LGO tells council to pay out £12k after "seriously flawed" child protection investigation
The Local Government Ombudsman has called on the London Borough of Bexley to pay out more than £12,000 to a complainant over the “seriously flawed” handling of a child protection investigation.
The Ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin, said the case highlighted the importance of councils following proper administrative procedures when conducting such investigations so that the process is fair.
A mother, EB, had complained that Bexley failed to respond appropriately to allegations of abuse made against her by her daughter.
The LGO said: “The complainant has been caused an understandable sense of outrage by an investigation which led to a significant interference in her family life, but without always treating her fairly or affording her the important procedural safeguards intended for alleged perpetrators.”
She added: “Councils have a vital role in safeguarding children, which often requires that hard decisions are made in difficult circumstances. Child protection investigations have a profound effect on families and it is important councils follow proper administrative procedures so that investigations are fair.
Dr Martin said the problems she had identified in the complaint did not concern the professional judgement of officers, but centred on significant failures in the council’s procedures and administrative approach to the investigation.
Criticising Bexley’s approach, the LGO found that the council had failed to properly resolve an earlier informal child protection investigation. Bexley then took further action, not because of renewed child protection concerns, but because a reference request from another authority meant EB needed to be informed of the earlier investigation.
The LGO identified a number of significant problems with the subsequent investigation. These included:
- a failure to produce and implement a clear investigation plan
- inappropriate questioning
- a failure to promptly pursue reasonable lines of enquiry, and
- a failure to properly record evidence and decisions.
According to the Ombudsman, Bexley took steps to accommodate the girl in an unclear manner and without properly considering alternative options. The council sought EB’s agreement to the girl being accommodated after the girl had already been told by officers she was to be removed and taken home to collect her belongings.
The local authority failed to explain the full circumstances when asking the complainant to agree to the accommodation and failed to properly record the extent of her agreement. It did not provide necessary information about the arrangements for the accommodation and failed to respond properly to EB’s comments that she no longer consented to the accommodation.
In addition the council asked the complainant to consent to the girl visiting her father, but failed to conduct a proper risk assessment. Bexley did not produce clear contact plans and delayed making a referral for a parenting assessment. It also imposed restrictions on the complainant’s care for her other daughter in an unreasonable manner, the LGO said.
The LGO recommended that Bexley pay the complainant £5,000 in recognition of her distress, outrage, inconvenience and time and trouble.
Dr Martin also called on Bexley to pay her £7,741.08 for her legal fees. These fees were incurred to obtain advice and representation before the panel that considered the final stage of the council’s complaints procedure, and not for bringing the complaint before the Ombudsman.
The LGO recommended that Bexley fund the instruction of an independent family counsellor to make detailed proposals for family counselling/reunification. She also said the council should apologise to the complainant.
