The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about the actions of a social worker who produced a Section 7 report. This is because the report formed part of court proceedings.
The complaint
The complainant, who I will refer to as Miss B, complains that the Council’s social worker produced an inaccurate report for the Court and misled her about the report’s content.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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) The Courts have said that we cannot investigate a complaint about any action by a council, concerning a matter which is itself out of our jurisdiction. (R (on the application of M) v Commissioner for Local Administration [2006] EHWCC 2847 (Admin))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss B’s son was the subject of private law proceedings, as part of which the Court directed the Council to produce a Section 7 report. Mrs B complains that the report was inaccurate, and that the social worker misled her about its content.
Matters relating to Section 7 reports fall outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction. This is because they form part of court proceedings. We cannot therefore investigate complaints about their content or production.
Final decision
We cannot investigate Miss B’s complaint because it relates to a Section 7 report.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman