Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an unsafe discharge from hospital and the Council’s decision to charge Miss X’s mother for her care home placement. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains her mother was discharged from hospital unsafely. She says her mother was placed in a care home without consent which left her without rehab for weeks. She says as a result, her mother now cannot walk. She also complains about the Council’s decision to charge her mother for the care home placement.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

5. Miss X’s mother, Mrs A, was discharged from hospital to a care home in July 2021. This decision was made by another council, Council B.
6. Lancashire County Council (referred to as the Council from this point) only became involved with Mrs A’s care from August 2021.
7. Therefore, we will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about her mother’s discharge to a care home as the Council was not responsible for this decision. Any complaints about Mrs A’s discharge should be made to Council B. If Miss A is unhappy with Council B’s response, it is open to her to make a new complaint against Council B for us to consider.
8. With regards to the Council’s decision to charge Mrs A for the care home placement, we are unlikely to find fault with this decision. This is because the Council appropriately provided Mrs A and her family with information about the financial implications of the placement. Further, the Council is entitled to charge individuals a contribution towards the cost of their care following a financial assessment. The Council has appropriately completed a financial assessment for Mrs A.
9. In relation to rehabilitation therapy at the time Mrs A was in the care home, it was Council B that had commissioned the therapy. Therefore, Miss X should direct her complaints about this matter to Council B.
10. The Council was responsible for providing rehabilitation therapy service to Mrs A when she moved to a nursing home in September 2021. The Council has explained its therapy team is involved with Mrs A. However, the Council acknowledged there has been a lack of engagement from Mrs A with the rehabilitation therapy.
11. Therefore, we are unlikely to find fault with the Council as there is evidence it is providing rehabilitation services to Mrs A. However, the Council cannot force Mrs A to engage with the therapy if she is unwilling or unable to do so.

Back to top

Final decision

12. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman