London Borough of Newham

The Ombudsman's final decision

Summary: We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint about the Council’s involvement with her children. This is because the law prevents us from investigating anything that has been or is the subject of court proceedings.

The complaint

Miss X makes various complaints about the Council since its involvement with her family in 2017. She complains about the information it provided to the court that led to her children being removed from her care. Miss X wants her children returned to her, her and their recorded rectified, compensation and suitable rehousing outside the Council’s area.

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 and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Final decision

We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint because the court ultimately made the decision to remove her children from her care. If she believes the court’s decision was based on false or inaccurate information, she would need to raise this with the court. We cannot act in place of the court, nor could we order Miss X’s children be returned to her care.

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman