Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the Council’s children’s social work team or the conduct of a social worker. This is because an investigation by the Ombudsman is unlikely to achieve a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained about the involvement of the Council’s children’s social work team and about the conduct of a social worker.
2. Miss X said the matter caused her frustration and distress.
3. Miss X wants the social worker to be retrained or removed from their position.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. 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:

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

6. The Ombudsman cannot investigate whether social workers are meeting their professional standards of conduct. Complaints of this nature should be referred to the social workers’ professional body, Social Work England.
7. We cannot investigate a complaint if it is about a personnel issue. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5a, paragraph 4, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

8. I considered information provided by the complainant.
9. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

10. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the involvement of the Council’s children’s social work team or the conduct of a social worker during their involvement with her family.
11. This is because, in its complaint responses, the Council considered each of Miss X’s complaints. It provided rationale for its investigation and decision as to whether to uphold, partially uphold, or not uphold the complaints.
12. As a result of its complaints process, the Council made service improvements including:
• reviewing its child protection medical process;
• reviewing its reimbursement policy for transport provided to parents to attend family time;
• reviewing its social media policy;
• reviewing its policy around family time;
• conducting supervision and training with the social worker; and
• reminding staff of service expectations.
13. The Council apologised to Miss X for any distress it caused in the areas it identified were not to its required standards. It offered Miss X a symbolic payment for her time and trouble in pursuing the complaint.
14. Consequently, an investigation by the Ombudsman is unlikely to achieve a different outcome, and so we will not investigate Miss X’s complaint.
15. We cannot achieve Miss X’s desired outcome to remove the social worker from their post. This is a personnel decision to be made by the Council, and the law says the Ombudsman has no power to consider this. However, if Miss X remains concerned about whether an individual social worker is meeting their professional standards of conduct, she could submit a complaint to the social worker’s professional body, Social Work England.

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Final decision

16. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because an investigation is unlikely to achieve a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman