Summary: Mr X and Mr Y complain the care provider cancelled their care visits without notice leaving them without access to care and support. The care provider was not at fault for ending its service to Mr X and Mr Y as they were refusing to accept support.

The complaint

1. Mr X and Mr Y complain the care provider cancelled their care visits without notice leaving them without access to care and support.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about adult social care providers and decide whether their actions have caused an injustice, or could have caused injustice, to the person making the complaint. I have used the term fault to describe such actions. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 34B and 34C)
3. If we are satisfied with a care provider’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

4. I have considered the information provided by Mr X and Mr Y’s representative on their behalf. I have considered the information provided by the care provider including their contact notes and the complaint responses to Mr X and Mr Y.
5. I gave Mr X and Mr Y’s representative and the care provider the opportunity to comment on a draft of this decision. I considered any comments I received in reaching a final decision.

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What I found

6. Mr X and Mr Y received direct payments from the Council. From July 2018 they used these to pay for support from the care provider. Mr X’s contract set out that he was to receive five hours of support per week for social outings and assistance with paperwork. Mr Y had a separate contract for five hours of support to assist with making and attending appointments, social outings and prompting medication. The contracts stated that ‘termination will occur when the following applies: either party give two weeks’ notice’.
7. Mr X and Mr Y did not sign the contracts as they wanted named carers stated in the contracts and a longer notice period. The care provider did not agree to this. Each contract also stated ‘it was deemed to be made on the date when it is signed by the provider, or when the Service commenced, or when the Service commenced if that occurred at an earlier date’.
8. The care provider arranged to support Mr X and Mr Y with a regular carer. However, the care notes record that, in January 2019, when the regular carer was off sick, Mr X and Mr Y refused support from any other carer including the manager.
9. In Spring 2019 the care provider, following concerns, suspended the regular carer who supported Mr X and Mr Y, pending an investigation. The carer later resigned. Mr X and Mr Y refused to receive support from another carer. The care provider arranged to meet Mr X and Mr Y with their Council social worker. Their previous regular carer was also at the meeting. The care provider’s notes say Mr Y started swearing and questioned why the carer was sacked. The care provider said they could not discuss this but could provide another carer. The notes record Mr Y swore and said he did not want anything to do with the care provider. The notes also record their previous carer said they would provide the care to Mr X and Mr Y.
10. Following the meeting the care provider spoke to the social worker who agreed it should terminate the care package. The care provider wrote to Mr X and Mr Y the next day. The letter stated ‘it was decided mutually that [the care provider] would no longer provide the privately funded service’. It set out that following the suspension of the carer Mr X and Mr Y both refused any other carer to attend to undertake the service even the management staff. This had left it unable to provide a service. It noted:
• the suspended carer had continued to be involved in their care matters,
• the behaviour at the meeting was unacceptable and it would not tolerate aggressive behaviour towards its employees to the degree the company could not guarantee a safe passage for entry, and
• all members of their multi-disciplinary team were involved and kept informed with ongoing issues. It had spoken to the social worker and agreed to cease the service immediately.
11. Mr X emailed the Council two days later to complain about the decision to end their support without notice. The care provider wrote to Mr X and Mr Y five days later. It said as their main carer had resigned, and they refused to accept any other carer, it had no choice but to cancel the service ‘so you could then seek someone that could fulfil your needs’.
12. In late October 2019 Mr X and Mr Y’s representative wrote to the care provider about the decision to end their support with no explanation, no notice and no support to find a replacement service.
13. The care provider responded in November 2019 that the service ceased six months previously. It said ‘the visits were terminated by [Mr X and Mr Y] themselves – as their lead care worker left our company and they refused to have any other care worker in place of this person’. The representative wrote again to the care provider. They highlighted that Mr X and Mr Y were not given any notice and no checks were made to see if they had medication arrangements in place. They also said Mr X and Mr Y were not offered another carer. They then complained to the Ombudsman.

Findings

14. Mr X and Mr Y did not sign the contracts. However, care started and so the provider was entitled to decide, in line with the contract wording, that the contracts were accepted by Mr X and Mr Y.
15. The terms of the contract required both parties to give two weeks’ notice. No notice period was given because the regular carer was suspended, then resigned. The care provider’s notes record the care provider offered to provide alternative carers. Mr X and Mr Y refused to accept these offers of support following the suspension of their regular carer. As Mr X and Mr Y would not accept support, the care provider was not at fault for ending the service at that time. The notes record the carer who had supported Mr X and Mr Y, and who had resigned from the care provider, said they would continue to support Mr X and Mr Y. On that basis the care provider was entitled to conclude Mr X and Mr Y were not being left without support.
16. Mr X and Mr Y’s social worker was also at the meeting. If Mr X and Mr Y had concerns about being left without support, it was open to them to raise this with the social worker who could support them in finding alternative support.

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Final decision

17. I have completed my investigation as there is no evidence of fault by the care provider causing an injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman