Summary: Ms C complained about the lack of support she and her son received from the Council, which she says resulted in distress to them. We found there was some fault in the way in which the Council supported Ms C and her son, for which the Council has agreed to apologise and pay a financial remedy.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms C, complained to me on behalf of her son, whom I shall call Mr X. Ms C complained about the lack of support she and her son have received from the Council. She complained the Council failed to:
• Tell her in 2019 about an 8-hour increase in her son’s care.
• Help her with finding appropriate activities for her son.
• Help her with issues in relation to her son’s wheelchair and the incontinence products he receives.
• Support her in her role as her son’s informal carer, by allocating more support hours for her son so she can provide less support during the day.
• Help her son with issues around finding volunteering work for her son.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word 'fault' to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered the information I received from Ms C and the Council and interviewed a Council officer. I shared a copy of my draft decision statement with Ms C and the Council and considered any comments I received, before I made my final decision.

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What I found

6. Mr X’s care review from 2019 states he has Cerebral Palsy, mobilises using a powered wheelchair and uses a hoist for all transfers. Ms C is his mother and main carer and supports him with transfers, all aspects of personal care and everyday living tasks. Mr X also needs support with accessing his community and leisure activities, which include his voluntary work.

The complaint about not being told about the 8 hours increase

7. Ms C complained that:
• She did not get a copy of the care review (assessment and plan) from 2019.
• As such, she did not know until December 2019 that the Council increased her son’s support by 8 hours, and that it was meant for support with socialisation.
• This resulted in a delay of her son being able to start using the additional 8 hours.
8. Mr X’s care review from July 2019 said: “social worker will (…) request an increase to the current direct payment hours enabling Mr X to socialise with people his own age”.
9. The Council said that:
• Mr X’s case went to panel in October 2019, with a request to increase his support from 40 to 48 hours per week.
• The Council finalised the increased budget in December 2019, after which the social worker informed Mr X of the increase through a letter.

Analysis

10. Ms C and her son did not receive a copy of his care review, which is fault.
11. It took three months between the Council identifying the need for more support to access the community, and for the proposed increase in Mr X’s budget going to panel for approval. This is an unreasonable delay, which is fault.
12. It took another two months until the Council actually increased Mr X’s budget. This is an unreasonable delay, which is fault.
13. However, once the increase in the budget occurred, the Council immediately informed Mr X and his mother.
14. As such, there was an injustice to Mr X because it took an unreasonable amount of time before he could start using the additional eight hours, the need for which had been identified in July 2019. There was also an injustice to Ms C, because the eight hours gives her an extra break from her role as her son’s carer.

The complaint about finding activities for her son

15. Mr X’s care review of July 2019 said that Mr X would like to be able to socialise in the evening with people of his age. The social worker would therefore explore additional community services to enable Mr X to socialise with people of his own age.
16. Ms C complained the Council failed to help her son to find places / activities / clubs he could go to. She said it has been difficult for her to find activities, because neither she nor her son have access to the internet.
17. I only found one reference in the Council’s records that showed the social worker was helping to explore options for Mr X, between July and December 2019. In September 2019 the social worker sent an internal email, which said: “He really enjoys socialising, music, films (…). Are you able to provide any information on services, voluntary services, and groups where he can attend to meet new people to socialise”? It is not clear from the records if this was responded to.
18. When the Council allocated the additional funding for the eight hours, the social worker contacted Ms C on 6 December 2019 to discuss the use of the increased hours. She left a message to say she would send a copy of the Council’s ‘Active Lives’ booklet. The Council sent this on 13 December 2019. However, Ms C said she never received this. The Council’s records confirm it sent the booklet.
19. Ms C told the Council in January 2020 that she had found a folk dancing activity that her son would attend twice a week.
20. The Council said that, until the lockdown in March 2020, Mr X was also doing voluntary work four days a week. 
21. Mr X’s care review of April 2020 said he found there were not a lot of clubs and activities for him locally. He said he did not have friends that would come to his house, but he would interact with people at work. I did not see evidence the Council provided any further support to try and identify possible activities or clubs for him, and/or signpost him to places he could get further information.
22. The Council said that:
• It gave a brochure with available activities to Mr X in December 2019. The Active Lives Brochure would enable him to explore activities of his own choice so that he could participate with people his own age.
• The possibilities of attending clubs and activities have been severely limited by lockdowns and Covid-19 restrictions.
• It would be expected that Mr X’s Personal Assistant (PA) would support Mr X to look for community activities, find college courses or any other activity that Mr X would like to do. Mr X did not ask the social worker for support with this at the care review in January 2021 and said the support was working well.
23. Ms C told me she found a charity shop for her son to volunteer at and a dance club in the end. However, her son still wants to find an activity to join.

Analysis

24. The social worker said she would look into activities and clubs Mr X could join. The social worker sent a booklet to Ms C which was an appropriate response. However, when Mr X mentioned at the review in April 2020 that he had difficulties finding something suitable, the social worker should have discussed this further at the review and identified an appropriate action how to try and address this once the lockdown would be over, even though the country was at lockdown at the time. There is no evidence in the care review this happened, which is fault.
25. However, I have not seen evidence that Ms C or Mr X asked the Council for help with this at a subsequent care review in January 2021.
26. The Council has told me that Mr X has a new social worker who will carry out a care review. The social worker should discuss with Mr X what activities he would like to pursue and how to find these.

Ms C’s complaint about incorrect information in her son’s 2021 care review

27. Ms C complained the Council said incorrect things in the January 2021 care review. She said: her son’s first name was spelled incorrectly, and it said he was in self isolation which was not true. This was rude.
28. I decided to discontinue this aspect of Ms C’s complaint, because there is insufficient injustice to Mr X.

Ms C’s complaint about not receiving more support in 2021

29. Ms C complained that she has wanted more support from the Council since January 2021. She says she has wanted more support hours for her son, so she could reduce the hours that she has to support him. However, she said the Council has not done this.
30. According to the Council’s records, it spoke to Ms C in October 2020. During the conversation, Ms C said she was coping and getting support from PAs. Ms C said she was doing a lot of washing and drying but she was managing. The Council asked if Ms C would like to be referred for a carer’s assessment, but Ms C confirmed the Carers Centre does reviews with her.
31. The Carer’s Centre completed a carer’s assessment with Ms C on 12 January 2021. It said that:
• Last year Ms C used part of her son’s direct payments to buy a cooker, which has made her life a lot easier. This year she would like to pay for a washing machine and tumble dryer. She also would like her cooker repaired and a fridge freezer. The assessor commented that this would be beneficial, as it would contribute towards reducing the burden on her.
• She would like to have time for herself. She said she finds it impossible to have much time for herself, because her caring role is so demanding of her time.
• Mr X has 40 hours of care support a week through a PA, five days a week between 8am and 4pm. Her son uses this mostly to do voluntary work.
• The assessor mentioned it was very clear that Ms C’s caring role was impacting her health and wellbeing significantly, both physically and mentally.
32. Mr X’s subsequent care review in January 2021 said that:
• Ms C reported that she spends a lot of time washing, due to her son’s incontinence: “the support her son receives from social services is okay and she added that she gets support from 3 PAs funded by social services”.
• The social worker asked Ms C how she has been coping with caring for her son and if they need any support from social services. Ms X and her son reported they were happy with the support they were receiving. As such, it was agreed there should be no changes in the care package.

Analysis

33. Mr X receives support five days a week from 8am to 4pm. This provides Ms C with some respite from her role as her son’s informal carer. However, concerns have been raised by Ms C and other stakeholders about the impact her role as carer has on her wellbeing. Nevertheless, it appears from the Council’s records that she did not ask for more support hours for her son, during his care review in January 2021.
34. However, the carer’s assessment did clearly highlight the benefits of supporting Ms C to try and buy some household items that could reduce some strains on her. I have not seen evidence that shows the Council subsequently discussed the outcome of this carer’s assessment with Ms C or responded to the recommendations from the assessor to support her with purchasing these items. This is fault. The Council should discuss the outcomes of Ms C’s carer’s assessment with Ms C as part of Mr X’s upcoming care review.

The complaint about the lack of support with insulating

35. Ms C complained the Council has failed to send ‘the Team that helps / advises residents with insulating their homes”. She says that a lot of heat escapes through her windows, which result in a high heating bill.
36. In response, the Council says it has not received a complaint from Ms C about this and does not exactly understand which ‘team’ Ms C is referring to. It said:
• It was recognised at the review in January 2021, that Ms C was experiencing difficulties with her finances. She reported this was due to the amount of energy consumed, due to the amount of laundry she had to do every day.
• Mr X’s social worker tried to provide Ms C with information about the Domestic Energy Advice Scheme in March 2021. This is where an Energy Assessor supports people to find the best fuel tariffs, and to ensure that people are in receipt of all the support they are entitled to from their energy suppliers. However, Ms C declined this offer of support. The record states: I informed Ms C that I would like to give her information about savings on her energy bills. Ms C stated that I was not ready to help her.
37. Ms C says she did not decline the offer of support via the Domestic Energy Advice Scheme, because nobody told her about all the (other) things this scheme could offer.
38. During the carer assessment in January 2021, Ms C said her bedroom was very cold and she referred to being on a waiting list for Croydon Healthy Homes. It appears, from looking at the Council website, that Croydon Healthy Homes is the official name for the Council’s Domestic Energy Advice Scheme. The scheme can also provide an assessment to see if the home meets the eligibility criteria for grant funding for insulation and help to apply for regional and national grants.
39. In response to my draft decision, the Council has said that Ms C is on the waiting list for support through this scheme.

Analysis

40. Ms C and the Council have confirmed that Ms C has been on the waiting list for support through the Croydon Healthy Homes scheme, which she has still not received. The Council should offer Ms C an immediate visit through its Healthy Homes scheme.

The complaint about the lack of support with her son’s wheelchair

41. Ms C says her son’s wheelchair battery needs to be charged during the evening and night, which means he cannot use it during this time. Ms C complained the social worker should have supported her son with finding a second wheelchair that he can use during this time. Ms C said that not having a second chair has impacted his independence while the battery is charging, including not being able to go to the toilet or go out at night. She said the social worker failed to provide this support, as a result of which there is still no satisfactory solution and she has felt unsupported, which was distressing to her.
42. Mr X’s care review of April 2020 said that he just got a new wheelchair, which made his life a little bit easier.
43. According to the Council’s records, Mr X’s social worker contacted the NHS wheelchair service in July 2020. The email said that:
• The Council recently increased his support hours so he can go out in the evening to socialise with people his own age. However, Ms C said he cannot do this, because his wheelchair battery needs to be charged in the evening. He therefore needs a second chair to transfer around the house or access the community in the evening.
• The social worker asked if it would be possible for Mr X to keep his old electric wheelchair.
44. In response, the wheelchair service said that it had made it clear to Ms C that the old electric wheelchair would be unsafe in the long term. It added that, as a provider the service could not expose itself to such a risk.
45. Furthermore, Ms C has tried to approach charities to see if she could get (funding for) a second wheelchair. The carers centre provided the Council with the names of four possible charities in August 2020. The Council contacted Ms C in September 2020 and advised her to contact one of them, Mobility Trust. Ms C said she had already contacted the organisation who said she should get help from a social worker to complete a referral form online. The social worker visited Ms C and her son in October 2020 to complete the online application form. The record states that Ms C told the social worker she did not need any further help with this.
46. Mr X’s care review of January 2021 said that Mr X’s request for funding for a second electric wheelchair had been granted.
47. However, this proved to be incorrect, and a social worker visited Ms C and her son again in October 2021 to complete a hard copy of the grant form for the Motability Trust.
48. The Council told me it suggested that Mr X could have a second battery for his chair, but Ms C refused this offer. Ms C said the wheelchair service will not allow them to change batteries.
49. Ms C told me that her son has continued to use the old wheelchair in the evening. She said the wheelchair is not dangerous, but it is important to keep an eye on things.

Analysis

50. I found the Council provided the support she asked the social worker to provide, which was to assist with completing grant application forms.

The complaint about volunteering:

51. Ms C complained the social worker should have supported her son when he was discriminated against by a charity shop where he volunteered. The social worker failed to discuss this with the charity and failed to advocate on his behalf. As a result, it took longer than needed to resolve the dispute, which was distressing to them.
52. Before the March 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, Mr X spent a lot of time volunteering at a local charity. Mr X said he enjoyed the socialising aspect of this work and mixing with people. He used to go five days a week for 2 to 4 hours. Ms C says that when lockdown was eased in the summer of 2020, other volunteers were allowed to return to volunteer at the charity shop, but her son was not. She felt the shop was discriminating her son, as he was the only wheelchair user.
53. According to the records, she first contacted the Council about this in December 2020. The social worker reported that Ms C had made a complaint about it to the charity but to no avail. As such. Ms C wanted the Council to provide support to her son to challenge what the charity had done.
54. The Council immediately allocated the case to a social worker who tried to contact Ms C. The social worker also carried out a care review in January 2021. The record of this states that:
• Ms C said the charity had not taken back her son after lockdown. She said there was no excuse for this as there was enough space in the shop and many people were actually working.
• Mr X said that other charity shops have been wonderful and given him work instead.
• The social worker advised Ms C to contact the charity when the lockdown is eased and ask if her son could return to work. However, Ms C said she did not want her son to return there.
• Ms C said the response from the charity to her complaint was not satisfactory.
• The social worker said he would seek advice on the next action.
55. The Council said that, as all shops were closed due to lockdown, it was not possible to speak with staff members at the charity shop. Once the shop opened again, the Council spoke to a manager at the charity in June 2021. The purpose of the discussion was to try and establish why Mr X could not return to his previous volunteering role.
56. At the same time, Ms C and her son had met with the charity and agreed that Mr X could return to work at the charity in a phased and risk assessed manner. Ms C said the social worker should have been part of that meeting, but the Council says it was not invited to this meeting. It said if it had been invited it would have attended.
57. The charity has since apologised to Ms X and her son that it did not allow him to return to his voluntary work when the lock down was lifted, and Ms C and her son have accepted the apology. He subsequently started to work at the charity again, once a week.

Analysis

58. I found the Council provided a sufficient response. It waited till the lock down was finished and subsequently discussed the case with a manager at the charity. Around the same time, Ms C and Mr X had a meeting with the charity which resolved the matter.

The complaint about her son’s incontinence products

59. Ms C complained, the social worker should have supported her and her son with the issue she has had with the NHS incontinence service, about the unsuitability of their products. Ms C says the social worker failed to do this, as a result of which it has still not been solved and she does not know what to do or where to go next. This has been very distressing for her.
60. In August 2020, the Carers Support Centre told the Council that Ms C mentioned there were issues with her son’s incontinence pads. She said the current pads were not enough to prevent leakage. The centre advised her to speak to the NHS continence service and her son’s GP. It also asked the Council if it could assist her with this.
61. At Mr X’s care review in January 2021:
• Ms C said they had not received any help from the NHS incontinent team. Mr X said the team had been rude, and he continued to have a problem with wetting the bed, which meant his mother had to do a lot of washing.
• Ms C said she complained to the hospital about the quality of the incontinent pads, which were provided by the District Nurses (DN). She complained that, when she tried to discuss the issue with the DN team, they were rude to her.
• Ms C said that due to the incontinent pads not absorbing the urine at night, she has to spend £300 a month to purchase more incontinent pads. As such, she is struggling with money and has been unable to pay some of her bills.
• The social worker said she would contact the NHS Incontinent Pad Team for advice and support for Ms C and her son.
62. The Council subsequently discussed this with the NHS, who said in an email in February 2021 that:
• It offered a number of solutions to assist with managing the continence issues.
• In response to Ms C’s complaint, a continence specialist team did a home assessment to try and find a solution to the ongoing issues. Unfortunately, Ms C refused the recommended product.
63. The social worker also asked Mr X’s GP to review his bowl management.

Analysis

64. When Ms C raised her concern, the social worker made enquiries with the relevant teams in the NHS. In the end, it is a matter for the NHS to decide what products are suitable, not the social worker. The NHS has told the Council its specialists have carried out assessments and suggested several solutions to try that are suitable.
65. If Ms C is unhappy with the way in which the NHS has supported her and her son with her continence, then this is an issue she needs to address through the NHS complaint process.

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Agreed action

66. I recommended that, within four weeks of my decision, the Council should:
• Apologise to Ms C and her son for any faults identified above and any distress these would have caused. It should also pay Ms C and her son each £200.
• Share the lessons learned with its adult social care staff.
• Discuss with Mr X what activities he would like to pursue and how to find these.
• Discuss the outcomes of Ms C’s carer’s assessment with Ms C.
• Offer Ms C an immediate visit through its Healthy Homes scheme.

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Final decision

67. For reasons explained above, I found there has been some fault by the Council.
68. I am satisfied with the actions the Council will carry out to remedy this and have therefore decided to complete my investigation and close the case

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman