The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council delaying in making child protection decisions. The Court is considering the children’s care and we cannot consider the same issues.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, says the Council has delayed in deciding whether to start Court Care Proceedings.
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) We have the power to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been, raised within a court of law. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X says that he is currently involved with private family court proceedings about his children’s care. He says the Council has also been considering for a year whether to start care proceedings. This is the Public Law Outline (PLO). He says the PLO has delayed too long.
Within private law proceedings the Court considers the totality of the child’s care. It considers whether it needs to order the Council to act or assess the family. It has to decide if care proceedings are appropriate. We cannot investigate the same issues the Court is considering.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Court’s consideration of Mr X's children's care includes the Council’s role and action.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman