Summary: Mrs X complains the Council has failed to assess her needs properly, reducing her personal budget to a level which means it no longer meets them.

Finding

Fault found causing injustice and recommendations made.

Recommendations

We recommend the Council:

• within four weeks:
  • writes to Mrs X apologising for the uncertainty caused by its flawed assessment and failure to fully meet her need for help maintaining a habitable home;
  • pays her £650 for the failure to fully meet her need for help maintaining a habitable home;
  • pays her £250 for the time and trouble it has put her to in pursuing her complaint;
• at a date to be agreed with Mrs X, completes a Care Act compliant assessment of her needs, including a decision on her eligibility, and produces a care and support plan which complies with the requirements of the Care and Support Statutory Guidance;
• within eight weeks provides evidence that it has:
  • taken action to ensure all future assessments comply with the requirements of the Care Act;
  • taken action to ensure in future everyone with eligible care needs receives a care and support plan which complies with the requirements of the Care and Support Statutory Guidance;
  • taken action to ensure in future the Council fulfils its duty to meet the need for help maintaining a habitable home;
  • produced a plan for identifying anyone else with an existing eligible need for help maintaining a habitable home which is not being met and correcting this.

Ombudsman satisfied with Council's response: 18 December 2020

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