Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about Ms Y’s care provision and direct payment. This is because the Council is already taking suitable action to remedy the matters raised prior to our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains on behalf of Ms Y as her court appointed deputy for property and financial affairs. She complains the Council delayed in responding to her request for a reassessment of Ms Y’s care and support needs and when the assessment was carried out it required Ms Y to pay towards the cost of her care from her means tested benefits. Mrs X said the Council failed to put care and support in place for Ms Y at the rate it would fund.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. The outcomes Mrs X sought in making her complaint to this office were for the Council to set up the direct payment for the correct amount and for it to reimburse Ms Y for the payments she had made towards the costs of her care from her means tested benefits.
7. In response to our initial enquiries, the Council told us it had, since its response to Mrs X’s complaint, considered further information which impacted its decision and that it was going to take action to resolve Mrs X’s complaint.
8. It said it found that Ms Y’s care had not been commissioned and this led to her having to pay for her own care. It also found it had not asked Ms Y to sign a top-up form. In light of these two issues it said it had decided to waive the top-up fee until Ms Y’s next review as a goodwill gesture. It expects the next review to take place in around November 2025. It will also commission the back dated care, including the top-up, and will write to Mrs X to apologise for this and to explain the action it is going to take.
9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. This is because the Council has decided, prior to our involvement, to take action which will provide a suitable remedy for the issues raised in the complaint to this office.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the Council is taking suitable action to resolve the matters raised in the complaint and so it does not require a further investigation by us.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman