The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about a Council officer misusing their work email account to send an email about a personal family matter. This is because the officer was not performing an administrative function of the Council when the incident happened.
The complaint
The complainant, who I will call Mrs X, complains that a Council officer misused their work email address to send an email about a personal family matter. Mrs X would like an apology from the officer.
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 where the body complained about is not responsible for the issue being raised. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(1), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The email sent by the officer was in relation to a private family matter. The Council has said that it has was not involved in the matters raised by the officer. Therefore, the officer was not performing an administrative function of the Council when she sent the email, and we therefore cannot investigate this complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the officer was not performing an administrative function of the Council when they sent the email.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman