Summary: The Council acknowledges fault in failing to formally notify Miss X of a change in care provider. It further acknowledges shortcomings in the way it managed her complaint about this.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains the Council made changes to her care plan and changed her care provider without consulting her. She also complains about how the Council handled her subsequent complaint, including the conduct of an officer she considered to be rude.

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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. 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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How I considered this complaint

4. I have:

• considered the complaint and information provided by Miss X;
• considered correspondence between Miss X and the Council, including the Council’s response to the complaint;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the responses;
• taken account of relevant legislation;
• offered Miss X and the Council an opportunity to comment on a draft of this document, and taken account of comments made.

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What I found

Relevant legislation and Council policy

5. The Care Act 2014 is the legislation that sets out local authorities’ powers and duties in respect of adult social care. The Care Act places a duty on local authorities to promote the wellbeing of people in their area.
6. Sections 9 and 10 of the Care Act require local authorities to carry out an assessment of any adult who appears to need care and support. Where a local authority has determined that a person has eligible needs, it must meet those needs.
7. In some circumstances, a local authority may commission another organisation to provide care services on its behalf. However, it remains responsible for those services and for the actions of the organisation providing them.
8. The Council handles complaints about adult social care in line with the Local Authority Social Services and NHS Complaints Regulations 2009. Under these regulations, the Council operates a single-stage process for Adult Social Care complaints. It commits to providing advice and support and working collaboratively with complainants and social care providers to achieve effective and timely resolution.

Background

9. Miss X has a diagnosed mental health condition which affects her ability to carry out aspects of day-to-day living. The Council assessed Miss X’s needs and determined she had eligible care and support needs. It agreed to provide two hours of support per week to assist with tasks such as managing paperwork, reading and responding to emails, opening post, using online applications for tasks such as food shopping, and organising her home.
10. In 2024, Miss X sustained a broken wrist, and her recovery took longer than expected. In November 2024, the Council agreed to provide an additional 30 minutes of support per week to assist with personal care. The Council’s records indicate this additional support was temporary and due to end on 18 December 2025.
11. The Council reviewed Miss X’s needs again in December 2024. During the review, Miss X reported difficulties with her mental health and said she was experiencing low mood. The reviewer made a referral to an NHS mental health support service and advised Miss X to contact her GP. The additional temporary support ended, and the care package reverted to two hours per week.
12. Miss X says that, in June 2025, the Council changed her care provider without consulting her in advance. She states she only became aware of the change when a carer from the new agency arrived at her home.
13. The Council says it was notified by Miss X’s previous care provider that it could no longer provide her usual service, and it subsequently terminated that contract. The Council says it attempted to contact Miss X by telephone but was unable to reach her and left a voicemail asking her to contact its brokerage team. It says this was followed by an email. The Council says it did not receive a response from Miss X and, to ensure continuity of care, it arranged a new care provider. The Council accepts it should have followed up its attempts to contact Miss X with written confirmation of the change in provider. It apologised for this in its complaint response dated 11 July 2025.
14. Ms X submitted a formal complaint to the Council about the unexpected change of care provider and about rudeness and unprofessional conduct from an officer during a telephone call about this matter.
15. Miss X says the Council did not contact her to confirm its understanding of her complaint. She says she did not have an opportunity to submit her evidence of a recording of the officer she alleges was rude, which is at the heart of her complaint.
16. In its response to enquiries from this office, the Council acknowledges, that on this occasion, it failed to agree a complaint summary with Miss X, and that doing so would have ensured transparency, a shared understanding, and a fair investigation of the points of complaint. The Council has apologised that it failed to do so.
17. The Council says it has no record of Miss X declaring that she held a voice recording of an officer she accuses being rude. It notes that recording staff without their knowledge or consent is not considered appropriate or in keeping with expected standards of engagement. The Council says that, had Miss X declared the recording, she would have been advised on how to submit it formally to the complaints team. The Council invites Miss X to provide the recording, stating it would be considered in accordance with its complaint’s procedures and data protection guidance.

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Analysis

18. The Council accepts it changed Miss X’s care provider without confirming the change to her in writing after it was unable to make contact. While the Council took steps to try to contact Miss X by telephone and email, it remained responsible for ensuring she was properly informed of a significant change to her care arrangements.
19. Changing a care provider is a key decision which should be communicated clearly and in advance, wherever possible. The Council’s failure to ensure Miss X was aware of the change before the new provider attended was fault. Although the Council acted to maintain continuity of care, this does not remove its responsibility to keep Miss X informed.
20. As a result, Miss X was taken by surprise when a new carer arrived at her home. This is likely to have caused her avoidable distress, uncertainty, and a loss of confidence in how her care was managed.
21. The Council has acknowledged it did not agree a complaint summary with Miss X at the outset of its investigation. Good administrative practice requires councils to clearly establish and confirm the scope of a complaint to ensure there is a shared understanding of the issues to be investigated. This helps ensure the investigation is fair, transparent, and addresses all relevant concerns.
22. In this case, the Council’s failure to do so was fault. While the Council did investigate and respond to Miss X’s complaint, the lack of an agreed complaint summary created a risk that her concerns were not fully understood or addressed which caused her avoidable uncertainty about whether all her concerns were properly considered.
23. The Council says it has no record of Miss X declaring the recording of the officer and has invited her to submit the recording for consideration. I find no fault with the Council here.

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Agreed Action

24. The Council will, within four weeks of the final decision:

• provide a written apology to Miss X for failing to inform her in advance of the change to her care provider, and for the distress and uncertainty this caused;
• make a symbolic payment to Miss X of £150 in recognition of the avoidable distress and loss of confidence caused by the Council’s actions;
• remind relevant staff of the importance of clearly informing service users, in advance where possible, of any significant changes to their care arrangements, and of confirming such changes in writing where contact cannot be made.

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Final Decision

25. The Council acknowledges fault in failing to formally notify Miss X of a change in care provider. It further acknowledges shortcomings in the way it managed her complaint about this.
26. The above recommendations are a suitable way to settle the complaint.
27. It is on this basis; the complaint will be closed.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman