The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council delayed in progressing his contact with his child, who is legally in care, and has recently decided to reintroduce supervised contact. Mr X can reasonably complain to the Council and return to the Ombudsman if he disagrees with the outcome.
The complaint
Complaint 1: Mr X complains the Council has delayed in progressing his contact with his child following the outcome of a court case last year. He says the Council delayed completing a risk assessment. Mr X says he just wants to develop a relationship with his child.
Complaint 2: Mr X complains the Council has recently restored supervised contact having allowed a few unsupervised sessions at his home. Mr X says his social worker was positive about how contact had gone.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide: it would be reasonable for the person to ask for an organisation review, use the complaint procedure, or appeal.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council. The information includes the stage 1 complaint reply dated 10 August 2022. I have discussed with Mr X his complaint and the current position.
My assessment
I will not investigate this complaint for the following reasons: If Mr X disagrees with the Council’s reply to his complaint about delay in progressing contact arrangements, he can go to stage 2 of the children’s statutory complaint procedure. Mr X tells me he did not receive the Council’s complaint reply but has recently received the copy I sent him.
A complaint about the recent decision to revert to supervised contact is a new complaint and premature to this office. The law says the Council must have an opportunity to deal with a complaint. Mr X can complain to the Council if he disagrees with the recent decision.
Final decision
The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council has delayed in progressing his contact with his child, who is legally in care, and has just decided to reintroduce supervised contact. Mr X can complain to the Council and return to the Ombudsman if he disagrees with the outcome.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman