Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council failed to properly investigate a complaint about the actions of its officer. This is because there is nothing significant to be gained by our intervention.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Miss X, complains that the Council has failed to properly investigate her complaint that the actions of its officer amounted to a conflict of interest.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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

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

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Miss X’s son was the subject of private legal proceedings. In the course of the proceedings, the Court asked the Council to produce a report under Section 7 of the Children Act 1989. Miss X says a social worker employed by the Council attempted to influence the outcome of the proceedings. She says she did so by offering information to the social worker tasked with completing the Section 7 report, and by contacting the Court directly.
6. The Council’s investigations have established that the social worker did take this action, though the Council has said that it does not find that it amounts to misuse of her position. Both Miss X and the Council are clear that these actions had no influence, either on the Section 7 report or on the outcome of the legal proceedings. However, Miss X does not believe the matter has been investigated sufficiently.
7. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because there is nothing to be gained by doing so. It has been established that the social worker acted as alleged, and that these actions had no impact on the outcome. The Ombudsman’s intervention would not add anything to these findings.
8. Whether the social worker misused her position is not a matter for us. Complaints about a social worker’s professional practice can be considered by Social Work England. They do not fall within the Ombudsman’s remit and we do not investigate them.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is nothing significant to be gained by our intervention.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman