The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate how a complaint about a report used in court has been investigated. This is because we have no remit to investigate anything in connection to matters decided in court.
The complaint
Mr X complains about the way his complaint has been handled in relation to a report prepared by a social worker for the courts during family law proceedings.
In short, he says the complaint investigation was unfair and the court report was biased towards his ex - wife.
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)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We cannot investigate a complaint about complaint procedures when the substantive matters lies outside jurisdiction. As Mr X’s complaint is concerned with a section 7 report prepared by a social worker for family law proceedings we cannot investigate any aspect of this complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it concerns matters decided at court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman