Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a breach of personal data. This is because there is another body better placed to investigate.

The complaint

1. Miss X raises concerns about a Council officer disclosing sensitive safeguarding and personal data to her ex - partner and a school.

Miss X says this has caused emotional distress, fear, lack of trust, and concern for her child’s wellbeing.

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The Ombudsman’s roles and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint unless we are satisfied the organisation knows about the complaint and has had an opportunity to investigate and reply. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to notify the organisation of the complaint and give it an opportunity to investigate and reply. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(5), section 34(B)6)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant which includes the Council’s response.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

My assessment

6. Miss X says the Council forwarded her complaint email plus meeting minutes to her ex-partner and her child’s school. She says the confidential data included safeguarding disclosures and her personal health information.
7. Miss X is unhappy with the Council’s investigation into her complaint. She says the complaint response minimises her safeguarding concerns and includes incorrect information about her family. She is concerned that a child was questioned in an inappropriate location.
8. The Council’s complaints investigation partially upheld her complaint. It acknowledged the data breach and how the error occurred. It explained the steps taken including staff training. It apologizes for the error and distress caused. It confirmed it had been recorded as a data breach. But it did not agree the data breach exposed her family to safeguarding concerns. It says her concerns were not being considered under safeguarding procedures.
9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. This is because the crux of the complaint - the improper disclosure of personal data and alleged breach of General Data Processing Regulations - is best addressed by another body: the Information Commissioner’s office (ICO). The ICO is the regulator for information rights matters and is best placed to consider matters relating to the processing, handling, and disclosure of personal data . This also applies to her complaint element alleging inaccurate information in the records held by the Council.
10. With respect to the alleged safeguarding issues, it seems Miss X is unhappy because her concerns have not been considered under its safeguarding procedures. This issue is premature so we will not consider it. As set out in paragraph three, all concerns should be raised to the Council first for its response before we can consider. We do not normally investigate a complaint unless we are satisfied a council has had an opportunity to investigate and reply.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is another body better placed to investigate.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman