Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about a Council decision that it will no longer accept his relative, Ms Y, as his advocate during his adult social care support planning and reviews. There is insufficient evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about a Council decision that it will no longer accept his relative, Ms Y, as his advocate during his adult social care support planning and reviews. He says the decision has caused distress and the Council is not respecting his choice. He wants the Council to allow Ms Y to continue to act as his formal advocate.

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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 impact 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 or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Councils must ensure that any individual acting in a representative or advocacy role is free from any conflict of interest that might compromise their ability to represent a person’s wishes impartially. Where there is no appropriate individual available to support the person’s wishes, the Council must arrange an independent advocate.
6. In its complaint response, the Council said that Ms Y has a financial and managerial interest in a service that it commissions for Mr X as part of his care and support package. It said this was a clear conflict of interest between her responsibility as Mr X’s relative and her interest as a service provider. For this reason, it could not accept her as Mr X’s advocate.
7. We will not investigate this complaint. Regulations and statutory guidance set out that an individual cannot act as a person’s representative for the purpose of care and support planning, if the individual is involved in providing care or treatment to that person. Ms Y has a professional interest in providing Mr X’s care and support. The Council’s decision that she is not a suitable advocate for Mr X appears in line with the regulations and statutory guidance. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman