London Borough of Bexley (24 020 346)
Category : Children's care services > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 27 Apr 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council not providing financial support for a young person who declined to leave a supported living placement, which Miss X said led to her organisation incurring a significant financial cost. There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council declining to pay Miss X’s organisation to warrant investigation.
The complaint
- Miss X said the Council abandoned a young person who refused to leave a supported living placement, causing her organisation to incur significant unpaid costs.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Young persons in supported living placements are expected to leave at some point after their 18th birthday, though the placements can be extended, as this one was. The Council would have had a homelessness duty to the young person had Miss X’s organisation served notice on them to leave. In its response to Miss X’s complaint, which she provided, it confirmed this. I would also expect the organisation to be aware of this duty. The Council would not have had a duty to continue payments to Miss X’s organisation if it allowed the young person to overstay.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant our further involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman