Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s involvement with a primary school. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. There is not enough evidence the complainant has suffered a significant personal injustice from the matter complained about. We also have no powers to investigate complaints from public bodies.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr X, complained about the Council’s involvement with a school at which he is a governor.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)
4. We cannot investigate complaints from bodies constituted for public service such as a school’s governing body. (Local Government Act 1974, section 27(1)(a), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My Assessment

7. We will not start an investigation into Mr X’s complaint.
8. It is clear the issues at the heart of this case are important to Mr X. But it does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code. We only investigate complaints where the complainant has suffered a significant personal injustice from the matter complained about. That is not the case here.
9. Also, any injustice to Mr X flows from his membership of the school’s governing body. Mr X says he is complaining as a member of the public, but also as a school governor. The school’s governing body has also raised its concerns with the Council. So, while the injustice test has not been met, the law also prevents us from investigating complaints where they are made on behalf of a public body. Mr X’s complaint as a governor, along with the governing body’s own complaint, falls under this exclusion.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code, and we have no powers to investigate complaints from public bodies.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman