Cafcass apologised for poor complaint handling

What happened

Mr and Mrs G complained to Cafcass that the guardian had changed her mind in court and had commented on matters that she had said she was not going to be involved in. As a result, Mr and Mrs G felt that the guardian had changed the outcome of the court case.

When Mr and Mrs G complained to Cafcass, they wished to submit evidence from their solicitor to support their account of what the guardian had said. Unfortunately, the solicitor was unwell at that time. Cafcass responded to the complaint and asked Mr and Mrs G to send in the solicitor's evidence when it became available.

A few months later, Mr and Mrs G sent the solicitor's evidence to Cafcass. However, Cafcass replied that its one–step complaint procedure was completed and the case was closed. It took several emails before Cafcass agreed to look at the evidence, even though it had requested it. Once Cafcass had looked at the evidence, it sent a further closing letter to Mr and Mrs G and did not explain why it did not consider that the evidence changed its decision.

What we found

We partly upheld this complaint. We were unable to make findings on the guardian's actions because the evidence was conflicting and we could not confirm what the guardian had said. Any view expressed by the guardian would be a matter for her professional judgment and therefore would be most appropriately addressed in court.

Cafcass's complaint handling was poor. Cafcass was overly rigid in applying its one–step complaint procedure. It was frustrating that it initially refused Mr and Mrs G's evidence after it had asked them for it. It was also very unhelpful that Cafcass did not offer any further explanation once it had considered the evidence.

Putting it right

Cafcass apologised to Mr and Mrs G for its handling of their complaint.