Summary: The investigation is discontinued because the Council agreed a remedy for issues arising from the financial assessment of Mr Y, which Ms X is satisfied with this and considers the matters resolved. She requested the complaint be closed.

The complaint

2. Ms X complains on behalf of her adult brother Mr Y. She says the Council

• failed to carry out timely and accurate financial assessments of Mr Y
• issued backdated charges without proper investigation;
• sent conflicting and threatening communications to her;
• ignored evidence she provided;
• failed to communicate between departments.

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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 an injustice, 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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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered the complaint and information provided by Ms X alongside information provided by the Council.

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What I found

Background

6. Mr Y is in his twenties. He has a learning disability. He has eligible care and support needs under the Care Act, and receives services funded by the Council.
7. Following the death of Mr Y's mother, Ms X and her brother became Mr Y’s main source of support.
8. Ms X took over as Mr Y's Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) appointee. The Council says it was not told about this immediately. As a result, correspondence about Mr Y's financial contributions towards his care continued to be sent directly to Mr Y until 2024.
9. The Council carried out a financial reassessment of Mr Y and issued revised charges, including backdated charges, which resulted in a significant debt. Following correspondence from Ms X, the Council reviewed the charges and reduced the amount owed to just over £4,000.
10. Ms X continued to dispute the remaining charges and made a formal complaint. She said the Council did not properly investigate the issues she raised or consider the evidence she provided. She also said it sent conflicting and threatening communications and failed to communicate effectively across its services. Ms X said she spent more than a year repeatedly providing information and trying to resolve the matter.
11. Ms X said the situation caused her significant stress, anxiety and sleeplessness. She also worried about the impact the dispute could have on Mr Y's care and support.
12. Ms X said the matter affected her wellbeing and her work. She said she struggled to concentrate, took time off work and eventually left her job. She feels she was left to deal with the consequences of the Council's errors.
13. Ms X wanted the Council to make a financial payment to recognise the impact the matter had on her. She also wanted reassurance that Mr Y's care charges would be managed accurately in future.
14. During this investigation, Ms X told this office she had accepted the Council's offer of a payment to recognise the impact the events had on her and had agreed a payment plan for the outstanding charges. She is satisfied with this and considers the matters resolved. She asked for the complaint to be closed.

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Final Decision

15. The investigation is discontinued because the Council agreed a remedy which Ms X was satisfied with. Ms X considers the matters resolved and asked for the complaint to be closed.
16. It is on this basis; the complaint will be closed.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman