Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council considered Mr X’s safeguarding referral relating to his sister. Any fault in the Council’s actions did not cause injustice because it did not affect the outcome of the Council’s decision-making.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council failed to properly consider whether his safeguarding referral relating to his sister (Ms Y) met the threshold for carrying out enquiries. He says the Council closed the referral without ensuring it received relevant information from Ms Y’s GP. He says his sister’s health needs have been neglected by her care home, who have not sought the appropriate medical attention for her skin condition. He says he wants the Council to apologise and make service improvements.

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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, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained.

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

3. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. A council must make “whatever enquiries it thinks necessary” if it thinks a person may be at risk of abuse or neglect and has care and support needs which mean the person cannot protect themselves. An enquiry is the action taken by a council in response to a concern about abuse or neglect. An enquiry could range from a conversation with the person who is the subject of the concern, to a more formal multi-agency arrangement. A council must also decide whether it or another person or agency should take any action to protect the person from abuse. (section 42, Care Act 2014)
7. Mr X made a safeguarding referral to the Council, relating to Ms Y’s care home not seeking medical intervention for a skin condition. The Council spoke to Mr X and the care home. It attempted to obtain information from Ms Y’s GP but says it did not receive a response. It wrote to Mr X explaining it had no reasonable cause to believe Ms Y was experiencing neglect. It closed the enquiry.
8. Mr X complained the Council had not waited for a response from the GP, or made further attempts to obtain the information it requested, and its decision was therefore flawed. However, the Council explained to him that the GP’s response would not have changed the outcome of its decision. Its conversation with the care home satisfied it that there was not evidence the care home was neglecting Ms Y’s medical needs, and the care home agreed to arrange a further GP appointment to review Ms Y’s treatment.
9. The Council obtained the GP’s views during the complaints process. This confirmed Ms Y had seen the GP several times in 2023 about the matter and the GP felt Ms Y’s treatment for the skin condition was appropriate.
10. The Council has provided clear reasoning for having made its decision to close the referral without receiving a response from the GP surgery. While Mr X may disagree with its decision, this does not make it fault. The Council’s duty is to make whatever enquiries it thinks necessary, and it concluded a response from the GP was not necessary, as there was not reasonable cause to suspect neglect. If we investigated this complaint, it is unlikely we would find the Council at fault, and we cannot question its decision where there is no fault in the process.
11. However, we will not further consider whether the Council was at fault because, in any event, any fault in the process did not affect the outcome. For this reason, it is not proportionate for the Ombudsman to investigate the matter, as any fault did not cause injustice to Ms Y.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because any fault in the Council’s actions did not cause injustice to Ms Y.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman