The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s actions when substantiating an allegation involving Mrs X and her husband. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.
The complaint
Mrs X said the Council defamed her and her husband by what it wrote in substantiating an allegation against them.
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 late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The matter at the heart of the complaint is a decision by the Council’s designated safeguarding officer (LADO) that an allegation against Mrs X and her husband was substantiated.
Mrs X was aware of that decision by the end of 2022 but did not contact us until August 2024. Therefore, the complaint is late. We may investigate a late complaint if a person has been unable to approach us within 12 months of becoming aware of a matter they complain of. An example would be where they complain promptly to a council and are delayed by a lengthy complaints process. In this case, there was no need to make subject access requests of various bodies before contacting us. This because the Council’s decision was already known to Mrs X. And Mrs X’s complaint to the Council was itself more than 12 months after the LADO decision. She could have approached us much sooner.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s late complaint because there is no good reason to exercise discretion to consider it now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman