Mr and Mrs X complained that the Council did not respond to their complaint regarding Children’s Services “committing criminal offences toward them”.
Whilst noting that it was not a matter for the Ombudsman to determine whether a criminal offence had been committed, the Ombudsman decided that the Council should provide Mr and Mrs X with a substantive written response to fully address their complaint. It should also provide Mr and Mrs X with an explanation for the poor communication, and a sympathetic apology for the significant delay in responding to their complaint.
The Ombudsman considered this to be an appropriate resolution to the complaint instead of conducting an investigation.