Summary: Ms C complained about the way in which the Council made decisions about her (late) father’s care, and the way it carried out his financial assessment. Ms C and the Council agreed a settlement during the course of the investigation, as a result of which the Ombudsman decided to discontinue his investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms C, complains the Council failed to involve her family when it made decisions between July and December 2016 about her (late) father’s care, whom I shall call Mr F. Ms C also complains about the way in which the Council carried out a financial assessment to calculate the contribution her father had to pay towards the cost of his care.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

I considered the information I received from Ms C and the Council. I shared a copy of my draft decision statement with Ms C and the Council and considered any comments I received, before I made my final decision.

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What I found

4. In/around August 2016, the Council carried out a needs assessment of Mr F in hospital, which showed he had extensive needs for care and support. The Council took a decision that Mr F should move into residential care. Mr F went into residential the following month.
5. The Council carried out a financial assessment to find out what contribution Mr F would have to pay towards the cost of his care.
6. Ms C has never accepted that her father needed residential care.
7. She has made two separate complaints on behalf of her father: one about her father’s placement in residential care and one about the financial assessment. The Council dealt with these through its complaint procedure.
8. Mr F passed away at the end of 2017.
9. Since then, the Council has had a dispute about the amount of money that still needed to be paid for the care Mr F received.
10. Shortly after the Ombudsman started its investigation, the Council and Ms C agreed on the amount of money Ms C would have to pay the Council, and that this agreement would be the full and final settlement of all the charges related to her father’s care support, and any complaints about her father’s care.

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Final decision

11. I decided to discontinue my investigation, because there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by a further investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman