The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a failure by the Council to take action to assist Ms X’s family when a child was being exploited. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to consider it now.
The complaint
Ms X said the Council failed to assist her family when a child was being exploited. She said this put the family in danger.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, 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
The Council accommodated a child of the family at the end of 2020. Ms X complained the Council had been slow to act and had failed the family, putting a younger sibling at risk. The Council responded to the complaint in February 2021. The Council told us it did not hear again from the family until June 2022.
The complaint about matters before February 2021 is late. We may decide to investigate a late complaint we think there is a good reason. This is usually where a person was unaware of an old matter until recently, or where a person has been prevented from complaining to us sooner. In this case, the matters complained of earlier than February 2021 were known to the family, and they were able to complain, evidenced by the Council’s response. They could have escalated their complaint, and complained to us, in 2021.
Any complaint about any more recent matters would first need to complete the Council’s complaints process and, if they are made on behalf of the child, to have the child’s consent. This is because the child is now aged over 18.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because it is late, and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman