The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X's complaint about the Council's involvement with his family following safeguarding concerns in 2024. The complaint is late and there is no good reason for us to consider it now.
The complaint
Mr X complains that following his arrest in 2024, children's services became involved and treated him as though he was guilty of the allegations against him. He says the Council supported decisions which led to his children living elsewhere and changed their schools and healthcare arrangements without his knowledge.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X complains about children's services involvement following allegations made against him. He says the Council treated him as though he was guilty, arranged for his children to live elsewhere, and changed their schools and healthcare arrangements without his consent.
The matters Mr X complains about occurred more than 12 months before he complained to the Ombudsman. I have not seen evidence of a good reason why Mr X could not have complained to us sooner. He was aware of the matters at the time they occurred and was able to raise a complaint with the Council.
We will not investigate this complaint because it is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X's complaint because it is late and there is no good reason for us to consider it now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman