Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council allowing the removal of a diagnosis for Ms X’s child when the child was not in Ms X’s care. The matter happened in 2020, and Ms X could have complained to us much sooner, so there is no good reason to exercise discretion to consider this matter now.

The complaint

1. Ms X said the Council wrongly allowed the removal of a diagnosis from her child when the child was not in her care. She said this had had significant effects since.

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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 late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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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. The matter complained of is late as it happened in early 2020, and Ms X was aware of it at the time. That there may have been more recent consequences of the decision does not bring the decision within time.
7. We may investigate a late complaint where a person was unable to complain within a year of the matters alleged. However, that is not the case here. Ms X was able to complain to us about other separable matters concerning her children during this time. And the Council’s complaint process in this matter, while slow, took up only nine months of a period of four and a half years between the matter occurring and her complaint to us.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because it is late and there is no good reason to exercise the available discretion to investigate it now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman