Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about children services actions. This is because it is unlikely that we would find fault on the decision to suspend the statutory complaints’ procedure. We are unlikely to achieve more on her child protection conference complaint. We cannot investigate those parts of her complaint which are covered by Court proceedings.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms X, complains about children services actions.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect 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 an investigation if we decide:
• the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met.
• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
4. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
7. I considered Ms X’s comments on a draft version of this decision.

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My assessment

8. Ms X’s complaint covers two main areas which the Council has replied to separately.

Statutory complaint

9. Ms X complained about an assessment, communication and the Council’s action around this. The Council replied at Stage One of the Children Act statutory complaints procedure. The law sets out a three-stage procedure for councils to follow when looking at complaints about children’s social care services. The accompanying statutory guidance, ‘Getting the Best from Complaints’, explains councils’ responsibilities in more detail.
10. The first stage of the procedure is local resolution. Councils have up to 20 working days to respond.
11. If a complainant is not happy with a council’s stage one response, they can ask that it is considered at stage two. At this stage of the procedure, councils appoint an investigator and an independent person who is responsible for overseeing the investigation. Councils have up to 13 weeks to complete stage two of the process from the date of request.
12. If a complainant is unhappy with the result of the stage two investigation, they can ask for a stage three review by an independent panel. The council must hold the panel within 30 days of the date of request, and then issue a final response within 20 days of the panel hearing.
13. The Council says it started the stage two but suspended it as there are concurrent Court proceedings about the children’s care. It says the Council has been asked to produce a section 37 report for those proceedings. Ms X has confirmed this is the case.
14. Private law proceedings, in which a section 37 report has been ordered, have wide ranging powers to make orders on the children’s care and the Council’s involvement. Ms X believes her complaint does not affect the Court proceedings.
15. We are unlikely to criticise the Council’s decision to suspend the complaints procedure. Councils can refuse to consider a complaint if a complainant says they intend to take legal action or if investigating a complaint could prejudice concurrent court proceedings. However, after the proceedings have ended, a complainant can resubmit the complaint for the council to consider. We expect complainants to then complete the statutory complaints procedure before we will consider the complaint. The Council has just suspended the process not refused it.

Child protection conference

16. Ms X’s complaints about a child protection conference were considered within the Council’s corporate complaints process. It formed a panel to consider the complaint at its stage two.
17. If, following a referral and an assessment by a social worker, a multi-agency strategy meeting decides the concerns are substantiated and the child is likely to suffer significant harm, the council calls a Child Protection Conference.
18. The Child Protection Conference decides what action is needed to safeguard the child. This may include a recommendation the child should be supported by a Child Protection Plan.
19. After the Initial Child Protection Conference, there will be one or more Review Child Protection Conferences to consider progress on action taken to safeguard the child and whether the Child Protection Plan should be maintained, amended, or discontinued.
20. Review Child Protection Conferences should be held within three months of the initial conference, and after that at maximum intervals of six months.
21. The Child Protection Conference is a multi-agency body and is not in itself a body in the Ombudsman's jurisdiction.
22. The Child Protection Conference plays an advisory role. But the final decision, for example whether to place a child on a Child Protection Plan or to discontinue a Plan, is the responsibility of the council. We would generally consider it appropriate for a council to follow the recommendations of the Child Protection Conference unless there was good reason not to.
23. The Council’s complaints panel recommended an early review conference. However, as the planned review conference was due shortly there was no point in doing so. It also recommended the review CPC have a different chair.
24. It is unlikely we could achieve more.

Court proceedings

25. On both of Ms X’s complaint there are aspects which are linked to the court proceedings. We cannot investigate those elements of her complaint. This includes any information the Council gives the Court and the preparation of that information.

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Final decision

26. We will not and cannot investigate this complaint. This is because it is unlikely that we would find fault on the decision to suspend the statutory complaints’ procedure. We are unlikely to achieve more on the child protection conference complaint. We cannot investigate those parts of her complaint which are covered by Court proceedings.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman