Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of matters involving his grandchildren. The law prevents us from investigating anything that has been the subject of court proceedings.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council removing his grandchild from his care. He feels he was not given a fair hearing or allowed to express his views in court. He wants the Council to halt the adoption process for his grandchildren, grant him custody of his grandchild and visitation rights for the other grandchild.

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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 cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
4. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. The Council has explained to Mr X and other members of his family that it cannot respond to his complaints about matters that are the subject of court proceedings. Mr X’s grandchildren have been the subject of care proceedings in court and Mr X will have had the opportunity to be present at hearings to give his views. It is reasonable to have expected Mr X to have raised any concerns he had about the actions of the Council in relation to these care proceedings in court.
8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is about the Council’s evidence to court as part of care proceedings. The law prevents us from investigating what happens in court, including the content of a council’s report to the court and its related actions. It also includes allegations of bias or unfairness by the Council, which should be raised as part of any proceedings. We have no power to intervene or make decisions in place of the court. Only the court can decide what is in a child’s best interest and any matters in dispute.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it relates to the Council’s conduct in court proceedings, which could reasonably have been raised in court.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman