The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint about a social worker’s report because it was used in court. We have no powers to look at evidence used in court.
The complaint
In short, Miss X complains about the Council failure to remove information relating to her from a report considered in court. Miss X says the report was not factual and contained biased opinions.
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 once court action has started or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended) We may decide not to start an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We cannot investigate. This is because we have no remit to look at a report used in court. Miss X’s remedy would lie via the court proceedings.
Final decision
We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint because we cannot investigate matters related to court action.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman