Summary: The Council was at fault for failing properly to consider Ms X’s application for financial assistance from its support fund to help her meet the costs of fleeing domestic abuse. The Council was also at fault for sending its response to Ms X’s complaint to several Council officers without explaining the reason to Ms X. The Council has agreed to apologise, make a new decision on Ms X’s application, and act to improve its services.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained the Council refused her application for financial assistance from its support fund to help her meet the costs of fleeing domestic abuse. Ms X says she is fleeing to another council area and she needs help to pay for removals.
2. Ms X also complained about how the Council dealt with her complaint. She says the Council’s response was copied to several other people and that this did not respect the personal and sensitive nature of her circumstances.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered the complaint and the information Ms X and the Council provided.
6. I considered the Council’s support fund criteria, available on its website.
7. I referred to the Ombudsman’s Guidance on Remedies, a copy of which can be found on our website.
8. Ms X and the organisation had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Bury Support Fund

9. The Council’s support fund has two parts, crisis payments and re-settlement payments.
10. Crisis payments are intended to meet one off needs. The Council says these are often provided as vouchers for food or energy.
11. Re-settlement payments are “to help people resettle into the community, because they are leaving care, supported accommodation or prison, or are fleeing domestic violence”.
12. The payments are discretionary. This means it is up to the Council to decide whether to make a payment under the scheme. The Council’s website says applicants can appeal against a support fund decision.

What happened

13. Ms X applied to the support fund in October 2022. She said she needed help to arrange and meet the cost of removals to enable the family to move away to escape domestic abuse. Ms X said it would be “virtually impossible” for her to do this herself while being discreet about the move to prevent her abuser finding out.
14. Three days later, the Council awarded Ms X £100 from its household support fund. In response to our enquiries, the Council said it could not provide a resettlement grant because Ms X did not meet the criteria of the scheme. It said its resettlement grants “are designed to assist people moving out of temporary/supported accommodation into a sustainable property.”
15. Ms X complained to the Council in mid-November. She said she had asked for help and been told to approach the area she was moving to. In her complaint, she explained that because she had not moved yet, the area she was moving to could not help her through its local fund.
16. The Council responded to Ms X’s complaint at stage one of its complaint process in early December. The Council said it had refused her application to the support fund because she didn’t meet the criteria. It provided details of some local and national organisations which offered support and advice about domestic abuse.
17. Ms X asked the Council to consider her complaint at stage two of its complaint process in late December. The Council responded in early February 2023. It repeated the findings at stage one and confirmed that Ms X did not meet the criteria for the support fund. The Council sent its response to Ms X by email. There were five other officers copied into this email.

My findings

18. Ms X applied for help under the resettlement part of the Council’s support fund. The Council said she did not meet the criteria for this because it was to help people leaving supported accommodation.
19. However, the Council’s website says applicants fleeing domestic abuse can apply for the resettlement part of the support fund. The Council’s decision does not explain why this did not apply to Ms X’s application. This was fault. There is no evidence the Council properly considered Ms X’s application against the criteria of its support fund. There is uncertainty about whether it would have made the same decision were it not for this fault. This is an injustice to Ms X.
20. Applicants can appeal against the Council’s decision not to make a payment from the support fund. There is no evidence the Council told Ms X she could appeal its decision. This was fault. It denied Ms X the opportunity to have the decision reviewed, which is an injustice.
21. When the Council responded to Ms X’s complaint at stage two of its process, it copied in five other officers at the Council. There may be good reasons why the Council did this for its own purposes. However, the sensitive nature of the details Ms X shared in her complaint should have caused the Council to consider whether such wide distribution of the decision was necessary. In the circumstances, copying so many officers into the response without an explanation to Ms X about the reasons for doing so was fault. It made Ms X feel “publicly shamed”, this distress is an injustice.

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Agreed action

22. To remedy the injustice to Ms X from the faults I have identified, the Council has agreed to:
• Apologise to Ms X
• Reconsider Ms X’s support fund application with reference to the terms of the scheme, having invited her to provide any additional information
• Provide Ms X with its decision in writing and set out how to appeal if she disagrees
• Pay Ms X £150 in recognition of her avoidable distress
23. The Council should take this action within four weeks of my final decision.
24. The Council should also take the following action to improve its services:
• Provide guidance to relevant staff about the circumstances in which people fleeing domestic abuse can apply for assistance from the support fund.
• Remind staff with responsibility for responding to complaints that complainants should be able to complain in private and that where the complaint concerns sensitive or personal details, such as of domestic abuse, distribution of the complaint and response should usually be kept to a minimum.
25. The Council should tell the Ombudsman about the action it has taken within eight weeks of my final decision.

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Final decision

26. I have completed my investigation. There was fault by the Council. The action I have recommended is a suitable remedy for the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman