Summary: Mr X declined many opportunities to move from the care home where he was placed in 2015. There is no reason the Council should have investigated his complaint six years later or should waive the bill for his fees.

The complaint

1. Mr X (as I shall call the complainant) says the Council should not charge him for two years’ care as it initially placed him in the care home for two weeks.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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’. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information provided by Mr X and by the Council. Both Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on an earlier draft of this statement before I reached a final decision.

Back to top

What I found

Relevant law and guidance

5. The charging rules for residential care are set out in the “Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014”, and the “Care and Support Statutory Guidance 2014”. When the Council arranges a care home placement, it has to follow these rules when undertaking a financial assessment to decide how much a person has to pay towards the costs of their residential care.

What happened

6. Mr X was placed in the care home which is the subject of his complaint in 2015. The Council says this followed his eviction from another care home after some behavioural disturbances. The Council says the move was intended to be a short-term solution.
7. A number of care home and nursing home providers assessed Mr X but would not accept him because of the risk he posed to their current residents.
8. The Council’s records show that Mr X would not engage with his social worker and refused to take part in a review of his needs which could have led to a move from the care home. Records of a conversation with a staff nurse at the home in 2016 show Mr X’s needs were largely physical and did not relate to his mental health, although he was disruptive to other residents.
9. The records show several options were offered to Mr X of alternative accommodation, but these were declined. Mr X eventually accepted the offer of a flat near some relatives in 2017.
10. The Council says there is a long history of Mr X failing or refusing to pay care charges. In 2013 he had already accrued a large debt to the Council but refused to pay. Subsequent entries in the Council’s notes show he complained the Council would not provide care but refused to pay a contribution towards the cost of his care.

The complaint

11. In 2021 Mr X complained to the Council. He said the Council had sent him a bill for £14000 which he could not pay. He said he had felt imprisoned in the care home where he had been placed on a short-term basis.
12. The Council’s records show the Council considered Mr X’s complaint. Officers noted the debt was part of a larger debt (some of which had been written off) which the Council had been pursuing for some time. The view of the complaints team was “if we have been pursuing the debt and he has not engaged or responded then we will consider this out of time for the complaint process and leave up to finance to pursue as per their protocol.”
13. The Council wrote to Mr X in June explaining that it would not consider his complaint as he had had more than twelve months to raise his concerns. It cited the Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 which said

“A complaint must be made not later than 12 months after—

(a)

the date on which the matter which is the subject of the

complaint occurred; or

(b)

if later, the date on which the matter which is the subject

of the complaint came to the notice of the complainant”.

14. Mr X complained to the Ombudsman.
15. The Council says “(Mr X) was given options of alternative accommodation and declined them. He was initially placed in (the care home) because he had been evicted …due to his behaviour. There were no other care homes that could meet his behavioural needs. Support was provided to find alternative accommodation for him in Preston.  (Mr X) has a long history of refusing to pay for bills and client contributions”.

Analysis

16. The Council made numerous attempts to enable Mr X to move from the care home but without success for some time, as he would not engage with the review process.
17. There was no reason for the Council to investigate a complaint from Mr X which was out of time.
18. There is no reason why the Council should now waive the debt relating to that period of care.

Back to top

Final decision

19. I have completed this investigation as there is no fault on the part of the Council.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman