The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: Mr X complained the Council ignored a referral he made regarding his son Y’s wellbeing, and this enabled Y’s mother Ms S to abduct Y. Mr Y said the Council’s actions have caused him significant emotional distress and deprived him of a relationship with his son. I have ended the investigation because we cannot achieve a worthwhile outcome for Mr X.
The complaint
Mr X complained the Council did not act on information he provided indicating his child Y was at risk from his ex-partner Ms S.
Mr X complained the Council’s actions led to Ms S removing Y from the country without his consent.
Mr X said the Council’s actions have caused him significant emotional distress and he has lost out on a relationship with his child.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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: we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6)) We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I spoke to Mr X and discussed the complaint with him.
I made enquiries of the Council and considered the information it provided.
I wrote to Mr X and the Council with my draft decision. I considered Mr X’s comments before I wrote the final decision.
What I found
Law Councils have a duty to make enquiries where a child is considered to be suffering or likely to suffer significant harm (the term used in the Act). The enquiries must establish the child’s situation and to determine whether protective action is required ( Section 47 of the Children Act 1989 ). Significant harm covers the risk of physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect.
A section 47 enquiry is carried out by undertaking or continuing an assessment. Local authority social workers have a statutory duty to lead assessments under Section 47 of the Children Act 1989 .
What happened The Council became involved with Mr X and his child Y in 2019 when it received a referral from Ms S alleging Mr X had harmed Y.
In January 2020, the Council carried out a section 47 enquiry following allegations made by both Mr X and Ms S about the other’s parenting. The Council closed the case after deciding Y was not at risk of significant harm.
Mr X complained to the Council as he felt the enquiry was biased in Ms S’s favour and the Council failed to take the information he supplied into account.
The Council appointed an Independent Investigator (IO) to Mr X’s complaint. The IO returned their findings on 10 June 2021. The IO did not uphold Mr X’s complaint regarding bias or failure to investigate his concerns.
Ms S left the country in August 2020 and took Y with her without Mr X’s consent.
Mr X brought the complaint to the Ombudsman as he remained unhappy with the Council’s actions.
Mr X wants us to find the Council’s failure to take his allegations more seriously led to Ms S removing Y from the country. I can appreciate Mr X’s frustration, but I cannot know whether this is true, and this is not a finding we could make. Further investigation into this complaint is unlikely to result in a worthwhile outcome for Mr X.
Final decision
I have ended the investigation. This is because we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X wants.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman