Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about her aunt’s Council arranged care. The complaint lies outside our jurisdiction because it is late and there are no good grounds to exercise discretion to consider it now.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mrs X, complains about the standard of care her aunt, Mrs Y, received in her Council arranged domiciliary care package from 2021 to 2022. Mrs Y died in early 2023.

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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 effect 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 an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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 council 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.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mrs X complained to the Council in October 2022 about the standard of care Mrs Y received in her Council arranged domiciliary care package which had been in place since late 2021.
8. The Council upheld Mrs X’s complaint in November 2022 and signposted Mrs X to this office in its final response letter if she remained dissatisfied with its response.
9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. It lies outside our jurisdiction because it is late. The law says a complaint should be made to us within 12 months of the person first becoming aware of the matters complained about. The Council clearly signposted Mrs X to us back in 2022. The complaint could have been made to us much sooner. I see no good grounds to exercise discretion to consider this late complaint now.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. It lies outside our jurisdiction because it is late and there are no good grounds to exercise discretion to consider this complaint now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman