The Council has agreed to remind its relevant officers of the legal requirements and best practice by sharing this decision statement and our guide to help local authorities handle complaints under the children’s services statutory complaints process. It should focus on the parts of the guide that suggest what a council should do if:only some of the complaint comes under the statutory complaints procedure;the complainant adds further issues to their complaint at stage two; andit takes a long time to find an investigating officer or to carry out a stage two adjudication.It should also refer to the key lessons from our investigations listed in the guide.

The Council has agreed to remind staff of the need to record all communications with familiesand confirm meeting arrangements.The Council has agreed to remind staff dealing with statutory children’s complaints of the criteria for early referral, and the need to consider whether redress for injustice or recommendations for service improvements are appropriate. It will be asking staff to attend our new workshops for complaints relating to children’s services.