Summary: The Council was at fault for delaying carrying out a carers assessment and for not telling Mr X the outcome of a safeguarding enquiry. This meant Mr X had to wait longer than he should have to receive a direct payment for respite and did not know the outcome of the safeguarding enquiry he raised. To remedy the injustice caused the Council agreed to apologise, make a payment to Mr X for the distress caused from the delays carrying out the carers assessment and carry out a service improvement.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council:
• Delayed carrying out a carers assessment for him.
• Did not properly handle a safeguarding incident involving his daughter.
• Did not provide support for his daughters application for a blue badge.

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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 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)
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 considered evidence provided by Mr X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
5. Mr X 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

Law and guidance

6. A council must make enquiries if it thinks a person may be at risk of abuse or neglect and has care and support needs which mean the person cannot protect themselves. An enquiry is the action taken by a council in response to a concern about abuse or neglect. An enquiry could range from a conversation with the person who is the subject of the concern, to a more formal multi-agency arrangement. A council must also decide whether it or another person or agency should take any action to protect the person from abuse. (section 42, Care Act 2014)
7. Where somebody provides or intends to provide care for another adult and it appears the carer may have any needs for support, the council must carry out a carer’s assessment. A carer’s assessment must seek to find out not only the carer’s needs for support, but also the sustainability of the caring role itself. This includes the practical and emotional support the carer provides to the adult.
8. As part of the carer’s assessment, the council must consider the carer’s potential future needs for support. It must also consider whether the carer is, and will continue to be, able and willing to care for the adult needing care. (Care and Support Statutory Guidance 2014)

What happened

9. In June 2023, Mr X’s daughter applied for a blue badge. The Council shared a copy of her support plan to support the blue badge application.
10. In April 2024, the Council received a referral to complete a carer’s assessment for Mr X as he was providing care to his daughter. The Council agreed to carry out a carers assessment in May 2024.
11. In June 2024, there was an incident with Mr X’s daughter. Mr X reported that one of her carers had removed clothing at her front door. The Council treated this as a safeguarding alert and carried out enquiries. This involved getting information from Mr X and the care provider who provided care to his daughter and reviewing the investigation the care provider carried out of the incident. After considering the information the Council decided to close the referral on the basis it considered there was no risk to Mr X’s daughter and the outcome of the safeguarding investigation was inconclusive. The Council did not tell Mr X the outcome of his safeguarding referral.
12. Mr X complained to the Council in early November 2024. Mr X complained about the incident in June 2024 with his daughter’s carer and the fact he had not had a carers assessment. Mr X also said the Council did not provide support to his daughter’s blue badge application.
13. The Council completed a carer’s assessment for Mr X in November 2024. This contained a direct payment of £350 respite for Mr X.
14. The Council responded to Mr X’s complaint in December 2024. The Council said:
• It shared a copy of his daughter’s support plan to support her blue badge application.
• It carried out an investigation into the safeguarding alert he raised and decided there was no risk to his daughter and inconclusive evidence so closed the case. The Council said it did not tell Mr X about this decision and should have.
• The Council recognised there had been significant delays completing a carers assessment for Mr X.

Findings

15. In relation to the concerns Mr X raised about his daughter’s blue badge application, I do not consider the Council was at fault. This was because it shared a copy of her support plan in support of her application. This would have detailed the support she gets and provided evidence of her care needs.
16. After the Council received a safeguarding alert from Mr X, it carried out investigations to establish what happened. I am satisfied with the way the Council looked into the concern and made the decision to close the referral. However the Council as it has recognised, it should have told Mr X the outcome. As a result he was not updated that the referral was closed.
17. The Council first received a request for a carers assessment in April 2024 but it did not complete a carers assessment until November 2024. This was fault. The Council has recognised it delayed carrying out the assessment. The outcome of the assessment was Mr X was entitled to £350 of respite, had the Council carried out the carers assessment sooner he could have started to access this respite much earlier. Mr X explained that having no respite put a strain on his own mental health for which he was receiving treatment.

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Agreed Action

18. Within one month of my final decision the Council agreed to carry out the following:
• Apologise to Mr X for the injustice caused from the delays carrying out a carers assessment and for not telling him the outcome of the safeguarding referral.
• Pay Mr X £150 to acknowledge the distress caused to him from the delays carrying out a carers assessment.
• Look at why it took so long to carry out a carers assessment for Mr X and consider what steps the Council can take to improve its communication and processes to ensure similar delays are not repeated. The Council should report back to the Ombudsman with the improvements it intends to make.
19. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

20. I find fault causing injustice. The Council agreed to the above actions to remedy the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman