London Borough of Lewisham (24 014 084)
Category : Adult care services > Safeguarding
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 07 Feb 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint that the Council did not deal with her safeguarding concerns regarding her grandfather appropriately or in a timely manner. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault.
The complaint
- Miss X complains about the Council’s handling of safeguarding concerns she raised regarding her grandfather. She says the Council did not deal with the concerns appropriately or in a timely manner.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact 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 or continue an investigation if we decide: there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Miss X contacted the Council to raise safeguarding concerns regarding her grandfather in October 2023. The Council opened safeguarding enquiries to consider the concerns raised.
- I have reviewed the Council’s safeguarding report and am satisfied the Council completed it appropriately. I also do not have any concerns over the time taken to complete its enquiries. Therefore, an investigation is not justified as we are not likely to find fault.
- We cannot share any information about what the safeguarding enquiries found as Miss X’s grandfather declined to consent for information to be shared with Miss X. The Council had completed a mental capacity assessment which confirmed Miss X’s grandfather had capacity to engage with the safeguarding process.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman