Wakefield Council apologises for addressing complainant as 'mate' on the phone

The local authority said it accepted the language it had used was "too informal".

The apology was revealed in a report by the Local Government Ombudsman, which rules on disputes between people and councils.

The report said that a man, referred to anonymously as Mr X, had complained about the way the local authority had conducted a safeguarding investigation.

That overall complaint was not upheld.

But the Ombudsman's report into the matter said that, "the council agreed an officer had called Mr X “mate” during a phone call.

"It apologised for this as being too informal."

The Ombudsman added: "It also accepted the investigation was delayed somewhat.

"However, neither of these points added enough extra injustice to that which was inevitable for us to investigate."

The report said that Mr X was unhappy with the manner of the safeguarding probe, which he had been the subject of.

However, the council had "found the matter to be unsubstantiated and took no further action".

The council declined to comment further.

Local Democracy Reporting Service