Summary: Mr X complained the Council stopped Mr Z’s funding for activities. There was fault by the Council. It wrongly recorded Mr X and Mr Z agreed with the revised care and support plan and did not share a copy with Mr X. This was fault causing avoidable confusion. The Council will apologise and amend Mr Z’s care and support plan to record the areas of outstanding disagreement. It will also provide Mr X with a copy of the revised plan.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained for his relative Mr Z. He said:
• the Council stopped Mr Z’s direct payment funding for activities following a review of his care and support plan.
• the Council’s complaint response did not properly explain the decision or set out applicable criteria.
2. Mr X said this caused a loss of opportunities and a negative impact on Mr Z because Mr Z cannot afford the cost of activities from his income.

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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 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)
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 evidence provided by Mr X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
6. 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

Relevant law and guidance

7. Councils have a general duty to promote well-being when exercising functions under the Care Act. Well-being includes participation in work, training, recreation or education and the person’s contribution to society. (Care Act 2014, section 1)
8. A council must carry out an assessment for any adult with an appearance of need for care and support. The assessment must be of the adult’s needs and how they impact on their wellbeing and the outcomes they want to achieve. It must also involve the individual and where appropriate their carer or any other person they might want involved. (Care Act 2014, section 9)
9. The Care Act spells out the duty to meet eligible needs (needs which meet the eligibility criteria). (Care Act 2014, section 18)
10. Councils can meet eligible needs by providing services including care and support at home or in the community. They can arrange for others to provide services and make direct payments. (Care Act 2014, section 8)
11. Direct payments are cash payments a council gives to an adult or their agreed representative to enable them to arrange care and support themselves.
12. The court decided councils have a legal power to provide financial support for recreational activities and holidays under section 18 of the Care Act 2014 (R oao BG and KG v Suffolk County Council)
13. An adult’s needs meet the eligibility criteria if they arise from or are related to a physical or mental impairment or illness and as a result the adult cannot achieve two or more of the following outcomes and as a result there is or is likely to be a significant impact on well-being:
• Managing and maintaining nutrition
• Maintaining personal hygiene
• Managing toilet needs
• Being appropriately clothed
• Making use of the home safely
• Maintaining a habitable home environment
• Accessing work, training, education
• Developing and maintaining family or other personal relationships
• Making use of facilities or services in the community including public transport and recreational facilities or services
• Carrying out caring responsibilities the adult has for a child.

(Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2014, regulation 2)

14. If a council decides a person is eligible for care, it should prepare a care and support plan which specifies the needs identified in the assessment, says whether and to what extent the needs meet the eligibility criteria and specifies the needs the council is going to meet and how this will be done. The council should give a copy of the care and support plan to the person. (Care Act 2014, sections 24 and 25)
15. Statutory Guidance explains a council should review a care and support plan at least every year, on request or in response to a change in circumstances. The purpose of a review is to see how a care and support plan has been working and to decide if any revisions need to be made to it. (Care and Support Statutory Guidance (CSSG), paragraphs 13.19-21 and 13.32)
16. A council should revise a care and support plan where circumstances have changed in a way that affects the plan. Where there is a proposal to change how to meet eligible needs, a council should take all reasonable steps to reach agreement with the adult about how to meet those needs. (Care Act 2014, sections 27(4) and (5), CSSG paragraph 13.27)
17. The court decided:
• A council’s duty under section 9 of the Care Act 2014 is not to achieve the person’s desired outcomes but to assess whether the provision of care and support would contribute to those outcomes
• The wishes of the person may be a primary factor, but they are not an overriding consideration
• If councils follow a lawful process in assessments, the courts would uphold them even if the outcome was a significant reduction in funding that the disabled person felt caused an adverse impact on them.

(R oao Davey v Oxfordshire CC)

What happened

18. Mr Z is autistic and lives in supported housing. He receives fifteen hours a day of individual care and support which the Council commissions with a care provider. Until March 2025, he also received a direct payment to cover the cost of various activities.
19. The Council carried out a review of Mr Z’s care and support plan in March 2025. At the same time, it completed an assessment of his social care needs. Mr Z remained eligible for care and support. The Council issued a revised care and support plan which said he needed support to develop and maintain relationships:

“Mr Z has a close relationship with his parents who are very supportive, and he enjoys spending time with them and his wider family network. Mr Z has engaged with social activities and has made a friend he sees weekly at the club.

Mr Z needs encouragement to interact with peers and build new friendships. Without support to develop new friendships and manage existing ones, Mr Z would be at risk of isolation which could impact on his mental health and wellbeing.”

20. Under the heading ‘how the outcomes are met by family, friends, local community and council funded services’ the care and support plan said Mr Z would be supported to engage in non-commissioned services. It set out local clubs that were free, activities he could do in supported housing and enjoyed like walking, car washing and gardening and volunteering at a local charity shop. It went on to say the plan had been discussed with Mr X and Mr Z and they were in agreement. Mr X told us he had no recollection of being provided with information about free clubs and activities and he had not received a copy of the care and support plan.

21. The Council sent Mrs X a copy of the Care Act assessment of March 2025. It did not send either Mr or Mrs X a copy of the revised care and support plan.

22. The reviewing officer and Mr X exchanged emails in March 2025. Mr X said the activities helped Mr Z to develop social skills and benefitted his wellbeing and his needs had not changed. The reviewing officer suggested Mr X should explore free activities. Mr X said this was already in place and they were looking at voluntary work, but Mr Z had no income left to spend on activities. The reviewing officer said Mr X could complain if he was unhappy. Mr X asked for the date when the DP would stop.
23. The reviewing officer asked the Council’s practice forum (two managers and a legal representatives) to reconsider the decision. Mr X commented:
• Mr Z’s needs had not changed
• The activities had been accepted and funded to date and were in line with guidance which said councils had to promote wellbeing. He needed structure and to engage in meaningful activities
• They had already included free activities in Mr Z’s weekly schedule
• The reassessment did not take into account the improvements in Mr Z’s behaviour, emotions and general wellbeing
• Prices had gone up and there was no extra income available.
24. The reviewing officer emailed Mr X to say the practice forum had reconsidered the case, but the decision was the same. The Council provided the following commentary “the Council is not obliged to pay for activities in addition to the care and support that facilitates the ability to do the same… there are free activities Mr Z could choose to participate in, in the absence of attending a day service”
25. Mr X complained to the Council about the matters he has raised with us. The Council did not uphold his complaint saying:
• Mr Z’s care and support needs were being met by the commissioned care in place
• The Council’s obligation was to provide care and support to meet needs. It did so by providing 15 hours of individual support which Mr Z could use to support him to take part in activities to enable him to access the community. Mr Z could choose to fund the activities himself or access free provision.
• There was no obligation on the Council to fund activities.
• The Council communicated its decision appropriately and gave a reasonable period of notice (four weeks.)
• The purpose of the review was to make sure the direct payment was appropriate to meet needs. The Council had changed its position on what the law meant over time.
26. Mr X was unhappy with the Council’s response and complained to us.

Findings

The Council stopped Mr Z’s direct payment funding for activities following a review of his care and support plan.

27. The Council is entitled to review a care and support plan. It should follow law and statutory guidance when conducting a review. Section 27 of the Care Act and paragraph 13.27 of CSSG say councils should seek all reasonable steps to reach agreement with the person before revising a care and support plan. I am satisfied the Council took all reasonable attempts to resolve Mr X’s concerns by the reviewing officer discussing proposed revisions with him during the review and then by the practice forum’s consideration of Mr X’s submissions on the proposed revisions. There was no fault by the Council on this point. It was entitled to revise the care and support plan as an outcome to the review, having taking into account Mr X’s points.
28. However, The Council’s revised care and support plan wrongly recorded Mr X and Mr Z agreed with the plan. This was not the case. It was poor record keeping and was fault causing avoidable confusion. The Council did not send Mr X a copy of the revised care and support plan, which was also fault causing confusion.
29. The Council has a general duty to consider well-being when reviewing care and support, but this does not mean there is a legal requirement to fund leisure activities, although the Court has confirmed councils have a legal power to fund activities. Mr Z’s care and support plan sets out how the Council will meet his eligible care needs. It is not for the LGSCO to determine what Mr Z’s eligible needs are, this is a decision for the Council.
30. Mr Z’s care and support plan does not identify any specific activities that are required to meet Mr Z’s eligible need for support to maintain relationships and access recreational facilities or work. Instead, the care and support plan contains one-to-one hours of care and support to enable Mr Z to participate in activities. The Council does not have to fund specific activity costs and it is not fault to expect these to be funded from a person’s income. I am satisfied the Council has set out a range of available activity options for Mr Z and although there are not his or Mr X’s preferred options, the Council’s obligation is to meet eligible needs and not preferences.

The Council’s complaint response did not properly explain the decision or set out applicable criteria.

31. There is no fault in the Council saying Mr Z can arrange free provision to attend with support from his one-to-one care worker. The Council’s complaint response gave a clear explanation.

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Agreed Action

32. Within one month of the final decision, the Council will:
1. Issue a written apology for the confusion caused by poor recording on the care and support plan. We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The Council should consider this guidance in making the apology I have recommended in my findings.
2. Amend the care and support plan to include the areas of disagreement and send a copy to Mr X.
33. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

34. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has agreed action to remedy the injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman