Summary: We have upheld this complaint because the Council was at fault in delaying its response under the statutory process for complaints about children’s services. The Council has agreed to resolve the matter by providing a suitable remedy for the injustice the complainant has been caused.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I will refer to as Mrs X, complains that the Council has delayed responding to her complaint at Stage 2 of the statutory process for complaints about children’s services.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share the final decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X made a complaint about a child protection matter which the Council has addressed under the statutory process for complaints about children’s services. Mrs X complains that Stage 2 of the process has been subject to delay, causing unnecessary uncertainty.
7. The evidence indicates that Mrs X asked for her complaint to be escalated to Stage 2 in July 2022 and that the statement of complaint was agreed in September 2022. Although the Investigating Officer and Independent Person have completed their reports, the Stage 2 adjudication has not yet been issued.
8. If we investigated this complaint, it is likely we would find fault on the Council’s part, causing injustice to Mrs X by delaying the resolution of her complaint.

Agreed action

9. The Council has said it intends to apologise to Mrs X, and to offer to make a payment of £250 to her in recognition of the fault on its part. This is a reasonable remedy in the circumstances of the case. In addition, we have asked the Council to, within one month of the date of this decision, conclude Stage 2 of the statutory process by issuing the adjudication letter, providing Mrs X with her right to escalate the complaint to Stage 3.
10. To its credit, the Council has agreed to take the action we proposed.

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Final decision

11. We have upheld this complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve it early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused to Mrs X.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman