A weekly update on adult social care complaint decisions

Summary: Mrs Y complains about delays in the Council’s assessments of her mother, Mrs Z, once she moved into a care home in 2022. In our view, there was delay in the allocation of a social worker and the subsequent care and support needs assessment. There was also some delay in completing the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguard authorisation. The Council has already waived some of the care home fees. It will also apologise to Mrs Y in recognition of her time and trouble.

Summary: Miss C complained on behalf of her father, Mr D that the Council had not provided clear and transparent information about the likely level of the contribution he would have to make towards his care charges before he agreed to a care package and then delayed in completing the financial assessment. We found the Council did not provide clear enough information about the likely level of the contribution and took 12 weeks to confirm the amount, causing a large debt to build up. The Council has agreed to pay £1000 to Mr D which can be offset against the outstanding amount, to agree an affordable repayment plan for the remaining debt and to improve its procedures for the future.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the standard of care provided to Mr C. This is because we could not add to the Council’s response or make a different finding of the kind Mr C wants.

Summary: Miss Y complains about the process followed by the Council when considering her application for a Blue Badge. We find there is procedural fault because the Council’s assessment did not consider all the evidence about the physical effects of Miss Y’s medical conditions and any impact on her ability to walk. The Council will apologise and refer Miss Y’s application for a fresh assessment.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about social worker provision and his current social worker. This is because there is no sign of fault by the Council and an investigation by this office would not be able to add to the response the Council has already provided on the matter.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s alleged failure to allow Mrs X to visit her late mother Mrs Y whilst she was in residential care. This is because the complaint relates to events that took place more than 12 months ago; it would have been reasonable for Mrs X to bring the complaint to us sooner.

Summary: Ms B complains about the way the care home decided to admit Miss C to the care home and then changed its mind soon after. We have found fault and the Council has agreed to apologise and pay a small financial remedy.

Summary: Mr B complained about the care provided by a care agency, the Council’s and the agency’s communications with him and the agency’s records. We have not found fault with the care provided by the agency or the Council’s and the agency’s communication with Mr B. However, there was some fault in the agency’s record keeping. The Council has agreed to apologise and to remind the agency of the importance of good record keeping.

Summary: Mr X says the Council failed to properly investigate his complaint regarding day care costs incurred by him on behalf of his son, Mr Y. Mr X also says the Council failed to respond to his request for additional provision for Mr Y. The Council has not completed a review of Mr Y’s care and support plan since July 2021. This is fault and has caused Mr X distress and a financial injustice. The Council has agreed to apologise, review Mr Y’s care and support plan, refund day care costs from July 2022 and make a symbolic payment to remedy the injustice caused.

Summary: We found fault with the falls care provided to Mr X when he was resident in a care home. We also found fault with the safeguarding enquiries carried out by the local safeguarding authority. The organisations involved will apologise to Mr X’s daughter, Ms Y, and explain what action they will take to prevent similar problems occurring for other service users. They will also pay Ms Y a financial remedy in recognition of the distress these events caused her.

Summary: Miss X complains the Council failed to support her in her carer role and confirm respite; changed her son’s support package and failed to confirm what it will be; and retracted some provision it had previously offered. We find the Council was at fault. This caused significant distress to Miss X. We make several recommendations to address this injustice caused by fault.

Summary: Ms D complained about the way the Council dealt with her father’s care charges after he was discharged from hospital. We found the Council at fault for failing to provide enough information about the care charges before the costs were incurred. The Council will apologise and waive the fees to acknowledge the injustice it caused.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s management of Mr X’s finances. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

Summary: Mr B complained about the assessment and decision to detain him under the Mental Health Act, and the care provided in hospital. We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about the decision to detain him under the Mental Health Act, as he has previously appealed this decision at the mental health tribunal. We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about the care he received while he was staying on the hospital ward, as it is unlikely an investigation would add to the response Mr B has already received from the Trust.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Mrs B’s Best Interest Assessment (BIA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) assessment in 2021. This is because we could not add to the Council’s responses or make a different finding of the kind Mr B wants.

Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s assessment that a stairlift would meet her mother’s needs, instead of the downstairs toilet the family wanted. There is insufficient evidence of fault to justify our involvement.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an unsuccessful application for a Blue Badge. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about financial assessment for adult social care charges. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault. The Council completed the assessment in line with its relevant policy and explained the reasons for its decision.

Summary: Mr X complained about how the Council calculated what his son, Mr Y, should pay towards his care. The Council was at fault. This meant Mr Y paid more for his care than he should have for over a year. The fault also caused Mr X and Mr Y’s mother, Mrs X, avoidable frustration. The Council will apologise to Mr and Mrs X, reimburse Mr Y the money he should not have paid towards his care and issue a staff reminder.

Summary: Ms X complained the Council did not carry out a proper financial assessment or consider disability-related expenses for her daughter, D. The Council is at fault for delay in reviewing the financial assessment, conducting a joint assessment and responding to correspondence. It has also failed to consider housing expenses in the financial assessment. This has caused distress to Ms D and Ms X.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about adult social care. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about lost items within a care home. This is because it is unlikely we could add to the care provider’s investigation which could not identify how and when the items went missing. It would be more suitable for the police or insurance company to consider the complaint about the missing items, as either theft or a claim to replace the lost items.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Mrs D’s care provider charging for care. This is because the Care Provider has remedied the injustice caused by fault and we are satisfied with this remedy.

Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the care provided by a Council-commissioned care provider. We could not add to the investigation carried out by the Council.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an unsuccessful application for a Blue Badge. This is because the Council has awarded a badge and there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a safeguarding alert. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. We cannot achieve anything to add to the Council’s ongoing enquiries and also the Care Quality Commission is better placed to consider.

Summary: Mr X complained about how the Council dealt with requests for equipment he needed to aid his everyday life and the Council’s communication with him, including its complaint handling. We found fault because the Council failed to adequately communicate with him and consider what other action it could take when equipment was delayed. To remedy the injustice caused by this fault, the Council has agreed to apologise to Mr X, make a payment and review some of its processes.

Summary: We found no fault with how a Council and NHS Trust completed a best interest decision about a discharge from hospital. We also found no fault with the time it took the Council to complete a care needs assessment. We did find there was service failure that led to a delay in arranging a care package. This prevented Mr Y from returning to his own home sooner. The Council has agreed actions we recommended to remedy the distress and the financial loss caused by the faults.

Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council’s communication about her direct payments and a lack of services to her in relation to her care. We did not find fault with the Council’s actions or how it has tried to support her in the past few years.

Summary: A care home, owned by the Council, failed to take appropriate action to manage the falls risk for Mrs Y, despite her vulnerability.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s communications with him about the care needs of his family member. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. This is because we have no remit to look at what happened during court proceedings, and we are unlikely to find evidence of fault in other matters.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s oversight of a micro-care provider. The complaint is late, and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to consider it now.

Summary: Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust did not appropriately record Miss X’s reasonable adjustments during a meeting. That did not cause her an injustice but the Trust should still take action to stop similar fault happening to others. Also, an Approved Mental Health Professional for North Somerset Council did not inform Mr X of his rights as Miss X’s nearest relative following a Mental Health Act assessment. The Council should apologise for the frustration caused to him.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint the Council did not provide floating support with his housing. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about financial assessment for adult social care charges. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council, and we could not achieve the outcome the complainant wants.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a defective shower rail fitted as a disabled adaptation by the Council’s contractors. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. There is nothing to add to the Council’s responses as it has responded appropriately. Further, it would be reasonable to expect Mr X to take his claim for damage/personal injury to court.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to issue a Freedom Pass (disability based). This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council causing injustice.

Summary: Mr X complains about inadequate record keeping and poor responses to requests for information by two mental health providers. In addition, Mr X complains about failings in the process of applying for Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. We will not investigate the complaint because parts are late, parts have already been considered by the courts, parts would be better considered elsewhere and it would be too soon to consider other issues.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaints about the Council’s adult social care support of Ms X because we decided Mr Y was not a suitable representative and because the complaints are late. We will also not investigate Mr Y’s complaints about the Council’s carer’s assessments and poor communication because these complaints are late.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaints about the Council’s adult social care support of Mr X because the matters complained about occurred between 2015 and 2018. Therefore, the complaints are late, and we decided not to exercise discretion to investigate these matters.

Summary: There was no fault in the way the Council considered Mrs X’s request for increased care hours. Therefore, the Ombudsman cannot question the merits of its decision.