Friends and family carers

London Borough of Barnet (17 018 374)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 22-Aug-2019

Summary: Ms X complained the Council did not pay her the same financial support as mainstream foster carers while she was a family and friend carer. She also said its decision to deduct child benefit from her Special Guardianship Allowance went against the Government's guidance. The Council paid Ms X the same fostering allowance as mainstream carers. However, it did not offer the opportunity to complete training that would have allowed her to be paid the additional skills fee. That meant Ms X did not receive as much money as she could have been entitled to earn. The Ombudsman finds the Council was at fault. The Council should remedy the injustice caused by paying Ms X the skills fee for the period she was a family and friend carer. The Council was not at fault in how it calculated the Special Guardianship Allowance.

London Borough of Brent (18 005 967)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 30-Jul-2019

Summary: Mrs X complained the Council failed to pay her Special Guardianship Allowance between 2015 and 2017. She said that caused her financial hardship. She said the Council also delayed in restarting her Special Guardianship Allowance in 2017 and in dealing with her complaint. The Council was at fault for stopping Mrs X's Special Guardianship Allowance. The Council has already paid Mrs X the Special Guardianship Allowance it owed her and an additional £3300. That remedies the fault.

Swindon Borough Council (18 001 459)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 29-Jul-2019

Summary: Mr and Mrs complained about the Council's failure to arrange contact with their grandchildren who were the subject of care proceedings. They also complained about the way the Council handled their complaint about this and poor communication generally. The Ombudsman has found fault in the way the Council communicated with Mr and Mrs X and its complaint handling. To remedy these faults the Council has agreed to apologise and make a payment of £250 to reflect the injustice caused.

Coventry City Council (18 011 645)

Statement Not upheld Friends and family carers 22-Jul-2019

Summary: Mr X and Mrs Y complain the Council failed to provide support to them as Special Guardians. The Council carried out an independent investigation into their complaints and agreed to the recommendations made. The Ombudsman has found no evidence of fault in the way the Council dealt with the independent investigation.

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council (18 011 199)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 01-Jul-2019

Summary: Mr X complained the Council failed to properly support him after he started to look after his granddaughter, Z, in 2016. He says it has not properly managed or risk assessed Z's contact with her birth father, Mr D. The Council failed to properly consider paying Mr X appropriate financial support until it awarded him Special Guardianship Allowance in 2018. It has agreed to make him a backdated payment equivalent to his Special Guardianship Allowance and apologise. This is appropriate to remedy the injustice caused by this fault. Z's contact plan was agreed by Court and does not allow her contact with Mr D. The Council has offered to reassess the appropriateness of Z having contact with Mr D if circumstances change. There is no fault in this decision.

London Borough of Bromley (18 019 407)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 01-Jul-2019

Summary: Miss X complains the Council failed to make payments for the entire period she looked after her granddaughter after her foster care placement ended. The Council has not considered the complaint at stage two of the statutory complaints procedure and there are no grounds for the Ombudsman to consider the complaint before the stage two investigation is completed. The Council should now conduct a stage two investigation.

Kent County Council (18 012 636)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 27-Jun-2019

Summary: There is fault by the Council in its means testing for disabled special guardians as its model fails to take into account extra costs related to disability when assessing resources available to the household. The Council will apologise and allow the complainant, and others affected, an opportunity to evidence disability expenditure and to have their claims backdated.

London Borough of Lewisham (18 019 158)

Statement Not upheld Friends and family carers 26-Jun-2019

Summary: I have stopped investigating Miss X's complaint about the financial support provided by the Council when she was a foster carer and then a Special Guardian. This is because the complaint has not completed the Council's statutory complaints procedure.

Durham County Council (18 011 766)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 21-Jun-2019

Summary: Mrs D complained the Council had unreasonably stopped paying Special Guardianship allowance even though it knew the family's finances were very strained. There is evidence of fault leading to injustice for Mrs D and the Council has been asked to make a financial settlement and it will consider all relevant information when it assesses whether the family's circumstances are exceptional and merit further financial support.

Royal Borough of Greenwich (18 009 656)

Statement Upheld Friends and family carers 10-May-2019

Summary: the Council delayed recognising Miss B's sister's children were looked after children which delayed provision of financial support to the family between January and July 2018. The Council also delayed considering Miss B's complaint at stage two. Those failures put an unreasonable financial burden on the family and created significant stress. A financial payment to three family members and training for officers is satisfactory remedy for the injustice caused.