Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s Local Authority Designated Officer’s handling of several reports of safeguarding incidents involving her child at school. This is because part of this complaint is late. There is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to justify investigating the most recent incident.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council’s Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) failed to investigate safeguarding incidents at her child, Child B’s school.
2. Mrs X complains the school neglected Child B for three years and, in July 2024, a member of staff injured Child B. She says the school failed to reply to her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. 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)
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 there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
6. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
7. We cannot investigate most complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(2), 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 and the London Safeguarding Children Procedures on Allegations Against Staff or Volunteers (People in Positions of Trust), who Work with Children (available online, as amended April 2024).

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My assessment

10. Mrs X complains about the LADO’s handling of several reports of safeguarding incidents affecting Child B that took place in 2018 and 2021. These complaints are late, as Mrs X did not complain to the Ombudsman until December 2024, and there are no good reasons for us to exercise discretion.
11. In July 2024, an incident took place between a teacher and Child B at school. Mrs X complains the LADO failed to investigate this safeguarding incident.
12. The Council has a LADO to coordinate and oversee allegations made against people who work with children. In September, the Council’s LADO correctly explained to Mrs X that LADOs do not undertake any investigations. They record decisions based on what the lead party’s investigation has decided. The LADO told Mrs X the school was considering her complaint. Separately, the LADO had advised the school to carry out two internal investigations concerning the incident. This action is in line with the London Safeguarding Children Procedures (referred to in paragraph 9 above) where the LADO has decided the allegations do not meet the relevant threshold for risk of harm, but there are concerns a child has been harmed.
13. The Council explained its decision making to Mrs X in its final complaint response. Its response also shows the police considered whether a criminal offence may have been committed, which the Safeguarding Procedures requires. And I have seen no evidence that supports Mrs X’s complaint that the LADO tried to cover up the incident. For these reasons, there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify investigating.
14. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the school’s handling of the safeguarding incident and her complaint under its complaints process. We have no power to look at complaints about these actions of the school.

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Final decision

15. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s Local Authority Designated Officer’s handling of several reports of safeguarding incidents involving her child at school. This is because part of this complaint is late. There is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council to justify investigating the most recent incident.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman