The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s report to court. The law prevents us from doing so.
The complaint
Mr X complained about the Council’s report to court, to which he says the Council did not make agreed changes for accuracy. He said the report was biased, for example wrongly stating the children’s mother was the children’s primary caregiver. He said this impacted his human rights. He wanted the Council to make the necessary amendments.
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)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We cannot investigate what happens as part of court proceedings. This includes the content of councils’ reports to court. We have no legal power to investigate Mr X’s complaint.
Mr X has the opportunity to highlight inaccuracies in the Council’s report as part of the proceedings, which are ongoing.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the law prevents us considering complaints about what happens during court proceedings.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman