Summary: We will not investigate Mr D’s complaint about the care and support he receives from the Council. This is because further investigation could not add to the Council’s responses.

The complaint

1. Mr D complained about the care and support he receives from the Council. Mr D says he is unable to access direct payments, carers are not flexible, they turn up at different times and are unable to follow basic instructions. Because of this he is unable to organise medical appointments. Mr D says no one answers the phone and there is no management oversight. Mr D says he needs help with administrative tasks, his health has deteriorated because of the lack of cleanliness in his home, and he needs one or two reliable carers.

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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, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
5. The complainant had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision.

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My assessment

6. The Council says Mr D’s has changed carers four times since January 2021. It contacted his care agency and asked it to let Mr D know if there were any changes to his care package. It explained Mr D is currently in receipt of temporary accommodation outside of the borough whilst repairs are being undertaken to his flat. The Council says it arranged for a care worker to assist Mr D with packing for the move and has changed his care provider to a local one in the area where he currently lives. It says it has also increased his care package during this period as he does not have a washing machine so a care worker will use the onsite launderette. Since his complaint the Council has undertaken a review of Mr D’s care and support plan in order to facilitate direct payments. It says it is currently exploring options to determine whether this is a sustainable approach and will decide on this point once Mr D has submitted an up-to-date financial assessment. It explained once complete direct payments can usually be set up within six weeks. We could not add to this or make a different finding even if we investigated.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because further investigation could not provide Mr D with a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman