Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the support provided to his daughter, Mrs Y, by Sheffield City Council and NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board. This is because we consider it unlikely an investigation could achieve anything further then Mr X has already achieved by pursuing a complaint with the Council.

The complaint

1. Mr X is complaining about the care and support provided to his daughter, Mrs Y, by Sheffield City Council (the Council) and NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (the ICB). Mr X complains that the Council and ICB failed to put in place the aftercare services to which Mrs Y is entitled under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.
2. Mr X says he has found it exhausting dealing with the Council and ICB and that Mrs Y has been left without the support she needs.

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The Ombudsmen’s role and powers

3. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman and Health Service Ombudsman have the power to jointly consider complaints about health and social care. (Local Government Act 1974, section 33ZA, as amended, and Health Service Commissioners Act 1993, section 18ZA).
4. 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 it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the bodies that are the subject of the complaint.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered evidence provided by Mr X, the Council and the ICB, as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
6. Mr X also had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision statement.

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What I found

Relevant law and policy

Mental Health Act 1983

7. Under the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA), when someone has a mental disorder and is putting their safety or someone else’s at risk they can be detained in hospital against their wishes. This is sometimes known as ‘being sectioned’.
8. Section 117 of the MHA imposes a duty on health and social services to meet the health/social care needs arising from or related to the person’s mental disorder for patients who have been detained under specific sections of the MHA (such as Section 3). Aftercare services provided in relation to the person’s mental disorder under S117 cannot be charged for. This is known as section 117 aftercare.

Background

9. Mrs Y lives at home with Mr X. Mrs Y is entitled to section 117 aftercare, having been detained under section 3 of the MHA in November 2023. The duty to provide or arrange these services is shared by the Council and ICB.
10. Mrs Y receives support from personal assistants that Mr X arranged. Mr Z and Mrs Y were paying these personal assistants from their own funds.
11. In September 2024, Mr X complained to the Council. He said the personal assistants should be included in Mrs Y’s section 117 entitlement. The Council assured Mr X that it would put the necessary funding in place and closed his complaint. However, this did not happen.
12. In October, a social worker visited Mr X and Mrs Y at home. At that point, Mr X was still considering whether he wanted to use Direct Payments to pay the personal assistants or would prefer the Council to directly commission a service.
13. Following further contact with the Council, Mr X confirmed in March 2025 that he wanted to set up Direct Payments.
14. Following further delays, Mr X complained to the Ombudsmen in early June 2025.

My findings and analysis

15. At the time of Mr X’s complaint to the Ombudsmen, he was still waiting for the Council to set up Mrs Y’s Direct Payments. This was the primary outcome Mr X was seeking.
16. The Council subsequently set up the payments later that month and backdated them to the start of Mrs Y’s section 117 eligibility. The Council acknowledged its delay and apologised for this. In further recognition of the delay, the Council also offered Mr X a time and trouble payment of £300. In my view, an investigation by the Ombudsmen would be unlikely to achieve anything further than has already been achieved through the local resolution process, albeit I appreciate this was a frustrating process for Mr X.
17. For the reasons above, we will not investigate Mr X’s complaint.

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Decision

18. The Ombudsmen will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to achieve anything further than has already been achieved through the complaints process.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman