Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about adult social care provision because it is unlikely we could achieve the outcome Mr B wants.

The complaint

1. Mr B says the Care Provider will not give information to his wife (Mrs B) about her father. Mr B is unhappy the Care Provider has taken no action to protect young visitors from risks he perceives to them from a resident. Mr B also says the Care Provider may have provided inappropriate care to his mother-in-law and contributed to her death; it has not responded to this point of complaint.
2. Mrs B found out her mother had died by accidentally finding her gravestone which was distressing, she therefore wishes to be given updates about her father. Mr B is aggrieved the Care Provider is not taking their concerns seriously and acting accordingly. Mr B wants the Care Provider to thoroughly investigate the matters raised, review the resident’s criminal file, perform a risk assessment, and at the least ensure the resident is kept away from visiting children.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about adult social care providers. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• the action has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Local Government Act 1974, sections 34B(8) and (9))

4. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Care Provider.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mrs B’s father (Mr X) lives at a care home run by Stowcare Ltd (the Care Provider). The Care Provider says Mr X does not have capacity to decide if Mrs B should have information about his health. Mr X’s sons have power of attorney to make decisions about Mr X’s health and welfare; they are his court appointed deputies. The deputies have told the Care Provider not to share information with Mrs B, and that she can contact them directly.
8. I understand that as Mrs B has a strained relationship with her family that might be difficult for her, but there is no fault in the Care Provider’s actions. The Care Provider must follow the instructions of those legally appointed to make the decision. Mr & Mrs B could challenge the deputies’ decision in the Court of Protection if they disagree.
9. The Care Provider told Mr B it had no evidence there was any safeguarding issue with the resident Mr B raised concerns about, so no need to take any action. Though Mr B disagrees with this decision, he and Mrs B do not have a direct personal injustice caused by that decision. Any child visiting the care home should be appropriately supervised by their parent or guardian.
10. Mr B is not happy the Care Provider did not respond to concerns about its care of his mother-in-law (Mrs Y). Mr B says Mrs Y lived at the care home briefly in 2018, therefore this appears to be a late complaint under paragraph three. It is also likely Mr & Mrs B would not be considered a suitable representative to make a complaint on behalf of Mrs Y. Mr & Mrs B do not appear to have any significant personal injustice caused by the care provided to Mrs Y to justify any investigation.
11. Mr B is not happy with the time it took the Care Provider to respond to his complaint, and the brief response it provided. It is not a good use of public resources to look at the complaints handling if we are not going to look at the substantive issue complained about. We will not therefore investigate this issue separately.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because it is unlikely investigation could achieve the outcome Mr B wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman