Summary: We will not investigate X’s complaint about money lost in a children’s home. We are unlikely to find fault or achieve a different outcome to the Council’s replies.

The complaint

1. X says they are a looked after child and money disappeared from their room.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by X which included the Council’s replies.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The Council looks after X as a person under 18. X says they had money in their room which disappeared. X says it disappeared during work carried out on their room’s door and it could not be locked. X wants the Council to refund the lost money.
6. The Council says the home and the Police investigated. They took no further action. The Council says it is not possible to say how much X had when the money disappeared therefore it cannot refund X.
7. It is unlikely our investigation could achieve more than a Police investigation or the home’s own internal investigation. We are unlikely to find fault in the Council’s decision not to refund X given the amount lost is unknown nor how it came to be lost.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate X’s complaint because we are unlikely to find fault or achieve a significantly different outcome to the Council’s replies.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman