Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Ms B’s complaint about a disciplinary matter concerning her neighbour who is a member of staff. The Ombudsman cannot achieve the outcome Ms B wants.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms B, says the Council has not properly investigated her complaint that a member of staff assaulted her and threatened her son. Ms B wants the Ombudsman to investigate the member of staff’s employment history and implement ‘a fair outcome.’

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered the information Ms B provided when she made her complaint. I sent a draft decision to Ms B and considered the comments she made in reply before I made my final decision.

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What I found

4. Ms B has explained the assault and threatening behaviour occurred in August 2019. The perpetrator (Mr Y), who is a neighbour, is employed by the Council. Ms B complained to the Council about Mr Y’s behaviour and expected it to take disciplinary action that would result in his dismissal.
5. The Council has told Ms B it has carried out an investigation but cannot reveal the details or outcome of the investigation. The Council also told Ms B that Mr Y’s behaviour did not relate to his employment with the Council.
6. While Ms B is dissatisfied with the Council’s handling of the matter and that her neighbour has not been dismissed, the Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint.
7. The Ombudsman has no power to take or recommend disciplinary action against individual members of council staff. We could not investigate Mr Y’s personnel record or how the Council has conducted its disciplinary investigation. While Ms B believes an investigation should only have had the outcome of dismissing Mr Y, the Ombudsman could not achieve any more for Ms B.
8. The allegations of assault and threatening behaviour are criminal matters and I note Ms B has reported the incidents to the police. It is for the police and Crown Prosecution Service to decide if any charges should be brought against Mr Y.
9. Ms B says the Council has now stopped responding to her enquiries about this matter. The Council has provided a final response to Ms B’s complaint and said it considers the matter closed. The Ombudsman is therefore unlikely to find fault with the Council for not continuing to correspond about the same matter.

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Final decision

10. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the Ombudsman cannot achieve the outcome Ms B wants.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman