The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council has dealt with the complainants concerns about the care of her children. This is because it is reasonable for her to raise the matters in upcoming court proceedings.
The complaint
The complainant, who I will call Miss X, complains about how the Council has dealt with matters relating to her children who were removed from Miss X’s care. Miss X says the children are not being cared for properly and wants them returned to her care.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended) The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
I will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the care of her children. This is because the current arrangements for the care of her children were decided in court, these court proceedings are ongoing. It is reasonable to expect Miss X to tell the court about her concerns about the care of her children under the current arrangements. It is the courts who will then determine the long-term care arrangements of the children.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect her to raise the matters in court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman