Summary: Miss B complained the Council failed to provide her with appropriate support and placed her in a care home that was unsuitable for her needs. There was fault by the Council. It delayed completing a light-touch review of Miss B’s care plan. But this did not cause an injustice to Miss B. I have therefore not made any recommendations to the Council.

The complaint

1. Miss B complains the Council failed to provide her with appropriate and timely support and placed her in a care home that was unsuitable for her age and needs. She also complains the Council’s communication with her was poor.
2. As a result, she says her physical and mental health has been negatively impacted. She would like the Council to:
• find her a living arrangement that is appropriate for her age and needs;
• consistently communicate with her;
• address the gaps in care services and acknowledge the distress caused to her by its actions; and
• review its processes to prevent similar failings in the future.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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 significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(1), as amended)

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What I have investigated

5. I have investigated matters in this case from March 2024, when Miss B moved into the care home in question, to June 2025, when the Council sent its stage two complaint response to Miss B. I reference matters outside of these dates for context.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I read Miss B’s complaint and spoke to her about it on the phone.
7. I considered evidence provided by Miss B and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
8. Miss B and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

Assessment

9. Sections 9 and 10 of the Care Act 2014 require councils to carry out an assessment for any adult with an appearance of need for care and support. They must provide an assessment to everyone regardless of their finances or whether the council thinks the person has eligible needs. The assessment must be of the adult’s needs and how they impact on their wellbeing and the results they want to achieve. It must also involve the individual and where suitable their carer or any other person they might want involved.
10. Councils must carry out assessments over a suitable and reasonable timescale considering the urgency of needs and any variation in those needs. Councils should tell people when their assessment will take place and keep them informed throughout the assessment.

Care Plan

11. The Care Act 2014 gives councils a legal responsibility to provide a care and support plan (or a support plan for a carer). The care and support plan should consider what needs the person has, what they want to achieve, what they can do by themselves or with existing support and what care and support may be available in the local area. When preparing a care and support plan the council must involve any carer the adult has. The support plan must include a personal budget, which is the money the council has worked out it will cost to arrange the necessary care and support for that person.

Reviews

12. Section 27 of the Care Act 2014 says councils should keep care and support plans under review. Government Care and Support Statutory Guidance says councils should review plans at least every 12 months. Councils should consider a light touch review six to eight weeks after agreeing and signing off the plan and personal budget. They should carry out reviews as quickly as is reasonably practicable in a timely manner proportionate to the needs to be met. Councils must also conduct a review if an adult or a person acting on the adult’s behalf makes a reasonable request for one.

Choice of care homes

13. The Care and Support and Aftercare (Choice of Accommodation) Regulations 2014 set out what people should expect from a council when it arranges a care home place for them. Where the care planning process has determined a person’s needs are best met in a care home, the council must provide for the person’s preferred choice of accommodation, subject to certain conditions. This also extends to shared lives, supported living and extra care housing settings.
14. The council must ensure:

• the person has a genuine choice of accommodation;
• at least one accommodation option is available and affordable within the person’s personal budget; and,
• there is more than one of those options.

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What happened

15. This is a summary of events outlining key facts and it does not include everything that has happened in this case.
16. Miss B is partially sighted and has other health conditions which impact her mobility. She previously lived with her mother who helped support her, until she died in March 2024 and so was unable to remain living in her mother’s property. Miss B was referred to the Council at this time. As Miss B had never lived alone and it was not clear the level of care and support she required, the Council arranged for her to stay at a care home as a short-stay placement. The aim was to assess Miss B’s needs and arrange a longer-term plan for care and accommodation. The Council identified Miss B has eligible care needs and it produced a care and support plan for her.
17. The Council reviewed Miss B’s care and support plan in June 2024. Miss B told the Council she did not feel it was appropriate for her care needs as many of the other residents are elderly and have conditions such as dementia. The Council discussed potential options with Miss B including bidding for properties in the community and exploring options for a home care package. Miss B had reservations about this as she would not have flexibility in her day due to waiting around for care visits, and feelings of social isolation. She mentioned Extra Care housing, however the Council advised this would not be an option for Miss B as Extra Care applicants must be aged over 55, which Miss B is not. The Council told Miss B it could explore the option of sheltered accommodation. Miss B told the Council she would like to think about the options.
18. A new social worker was allocated to Miss B in December 2024 as the previous social worker left the Council. The social worker met with Miss B in January 2025 to review the care and support plan. Miss B advised she wished to leave the care home, but she was unsure what her options were as she had worries about living alone, having never done so. The social worker explained there were options of:
• Miss B having her own residence, either by privately renting or Council housing, with a care package in place.
• Shared lives, which would help Miss B with her independence.
• Exploring supported living options, which the social worker advised she had emailed a placement to see if this was an option.
19. It was agreed the social worker would chase up the supported living placement she had previously contacted, and Miss B would register with social housing with the support of staff at the care home. The supported living placement later informed the Council it had no availability, and other placement options that had been explored by the Council appeared to cater for people with learning disabilities, which Miss B does not meet the criteria for. The Council noted there was a possible shared lives option outside of Doncaster, which Miss B viewed, but disliked that it was not in Doncaster.
20. The Council updated Miss B’s care and support plan in February 2025 and made a referral to Occupational Therapy (OT), so it could proceed in exploring potential shared lived options. It also arranged for Miss B’s care home to provide additional one to one support to Miss B of 5 hours a week for social outings, and practical needs such as attending the bank. The Council also noted Miss B had declined to consider options outside of Doncaster and had declined to consider supported living options within learning disability, as she did not feel this was suitable for her, given she does not have a learning disability.
21. In March 2025, Miss B viewed a shared lives option, but the Council says she did not feel it was suitable in terms of the location and property type. The Council advised it was unaware of other options within shared lives, but it would continue to explore options. The Council said it would also continue to look at other supported living options, but pointed out these are rare in resource for working age adults who do not have a learning disability or mental health need.
22. Around this time, Miss B complained to the Council about her care home placement being unsuitable for her needs. The Council responded to Miss B and told her it acknowledged her concerns about the lack of suitable provisions for younger adults in Doncaster who require both accommodation and support. It also told her the Council had explored all potential local options to meet Miss B’s needs, without success, but it would continue to explore options. Miss B further complained to the Council and told it her environment was unsuitable and distressing, as the placement is for older adults with dementia and similar conditions.
23. In May 2025, the Council noted it told Miss B about a supported living option which she could view, but she declined this. The Council met with Miss B shortly after to discuss her time in care. Miss B told the Council she did not wish to reside in any form of care placement in the long-term. She told it she would like to live more independently in the community. It was agreed that a staggered approach to Miss B’s transition into the community would be beneficial.
24. The Council sent its stage two complaint response to Miss B in June 2025. At the end of that month, the care home informed the Council it felt it could no longer sustain Miss B’s placement. Miss B moved to a different care home in August 2025 as a temporary placement, where she is currently living.
25. The Council reviewed Miss B’s care and support plan in October 2025. It noted:
• Miss B had expressed she feels she should be offered a placement for young disabled people only, which the Council has informed is not a type of service which is available.
• Miss B also expressed interest in Extra Care housing, which she is not yet eligible for due to her age.
• The Council had tried to discuss some of the shared housing options available, which Miss B has previously been referred to and declined.
• The Council had offered Miss B to be put back on the Council housing list which she had also declined.

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Analysis

26. I have not found fault in the way the Council assessed Miss B’s care needs. The Council identified Miss B has eligible care needs that could be met in a care home and produced a care and support plan to meet these.
27. However, we usually expect councils to consider a light-touch review within six to eight weeks after agreeing the care plan. The care plan was agreed in March 2024, so it should have considered a review in May 2024. The first review was carried out in June 2024. This delay was fault. However, the delay did not cause an injustice to Miss B as the outcome of the review was the exploration of other care options, which she later declined.
28. When Miss B expressed to the Council she was unhappy at the care home and wished to leave, the Council took appropriate action to explore other options. It also arranged additional support for Miss B to access the community for social outings and practical needs. The Council has also taken account for Miss B’s wellbeing. It has offered Miss B referrals to mental health services, which she has either declined, or which have not been able to progress further without Miss B’s consent, as she holds capacity and refuses to engage.
29. Miss B says the care home environment caused her anxiety and distress. I appreciate Miss B’s comments about her experience and recognise Miss B does not consider the care home placement was ideal or suitable for her, but a care home was the place Miss B could have her needs best met. During the time Miss B was at the care home, the Council has shown it was seeking alternative options for Miss B including outside of Doncaster, all of which she has declined as she has felt them to be unsuitable due to her age and mental ability. I am satisfied the Council has shown it was trying to act and provide solutions during this period. If Miss B wished to leave the care home, it was open to her to make her own arrangements.

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Decision

30. I find fault not causing injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman