LGO gets new powers to resolve complaints in adult social care
Archived press release
Date Published: 17/11/09
From October 2010, adults who fund their own social care will have access to an independent complaints review service provided by the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) following Royal Assent on 12 November to the Health Act 2009.
From October 2010, adults who fund their own social care will have access to an independent complaints review service provided by the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) following Royal Assent on 12 November to the Health Act 2009.
Once the Care Quality Commission completes its new registration programme of providers, the LGO will be able to review complaints about privately purchased care services made by users, their family or others affected by the actions of a regulated adult care provider.
Local Government Ombudsman, Tony Redmond, said:
“At present, under a private care arrangement, people have no redress for anything that has gone wrong except by using their provider’s own complaints procedure, or going to court.”
”This compares unfavourably with people whose care is funded or arranged by a local authority – they have access to a statutory complaints procedure and to the LGO if dissatisfied with the outcome. We will be able to correct this through our new service,” he said.
‘’We are already working with the independent care sector to develop practical support and guidance to help ensure that providers’ own complaint handling arrangements are effective. “
“We welcome the views of providers and their associations in developing the new service and also the input of organisations who support and represent users of adult social care services, their relatives, or carers,’’ he added.
The LGO is an independent and impartial organisation that gathers facts and then acts to resolve justified complaints in a way that is fair to everyone involved. Their expertise in complaint handling for local government has spanned 35 years and much of this will be transferable to its expanded jurisdiction. But the LGO recognise too that the diversity of the independent care sector, and the complexity of its relationships with regulators and service commissioners, will demand a very different approach.
The LGO will seek to highlight good practice in complaint handling within the sector through a range of training and support materials, and to identify any general learning from the cases it receives that may help to improve services more widely.