Summary: Mr and Mrs Y complain about the services provided by the Council to their late daughter, Ms J. The Ombudsmen will not investigate their complaint against the Council, as it is unlikely an investigation would achieve anything further for Mr and Mrs Y.

The complaint

1. Mr and Mrs Y complain about the services provided by the Council to their late daughter, Ms J. They said that Ms J was influenced to accept accommodation which was unsafe and did not provide appropriate support. Ms J had a history of alcohol misuse and was in hospital being treated for this when she was approached about moving into supported living accommodation. Mr and Mrs Y said she was very ill and vulnerable at this time and that the accommodation on offer was not suitable.
2. They also said there was a lack of input from social care while Ms J was in the accommodation and they feel that this contributed to her deterioration.
3. Mr and Mrs Y said they have never received an explanation for why their daughter was placed in the accommodation and why it was felt to be appropriate for her.

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The Ombudsmen’s role and powers

4. The Ombudsmen provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. They may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if they believe:

• it is unlikely they would find fault, or
• it is unlikely they could add to any previous investigation by the bodies, or
• they cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Health Service Commissioners Act 1993, section 3(2) and Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have spoken to Mrs Y, and considered the written information she and Mr Y sent us, including their comments on a draft version of this statement. I also considered the Council’s response to my enquiries.

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What I found

6. Mr and Mrs Y had had concerns about Ms J’s health for several years prior to the events complained of. They said Ms J had long-standing physical issues which had not been adequately treated, and psychological issues which became apparent in her early 20s. They said this led to her self-medicating with alcohol and that Ms J had had a number of hospital admissions as a result of this.
7. In February 2016, Ms J was again admitted to hospital. Mr and Mrs Y said that although Ms J had been living with them prior to this, she was discharged to supported living accommodation. Although Ms J was only in the accommodation for two days, Mr and Mrs Y felt it was after this that she began to deteriorate quickly, as she was used to living at home and the placement was not suitable for her. They also said she had tried living independently before, and it had not been successful.
8. Mr and Mrs Y said that in February 2016, Ms J was left alone and unsupported at the accommodation, and the staff there were not able to cope with her needs. Mr and Mrs Y queried whether the accommodation was safe for Ms J.
9. After Ms J had left the accommodation, Mr Y telephoned the Council and said he was concerned that Ms J had nowhere to go and no support, and that she was vulnerable. However, the Council said that no information could be given to him because Ms J had asked that information not be shared with her parents.
10. Sadly, in September 2016, Ms J passed away.
11. Mr and Mrs Y complained to the Council and the health organisations involved in Ms J’s care and support. In their complaint to the Council, they raised concerns about the company providing the accommodation, and queried how Ms J was supposed to pay the fees when she was not working and received no benefits.
12. The Council responded that it was unable to share details with them about Ms J’s time in supported accommodation nor about what happened when she left. The Council said that in May 2016, Ms J “was clear at that point that she did not want information shared with her parents. This was a view she shared with staff on a number of occasions. She was a capacitated adult and as such we have to respect her wishes… I do understand the sensitivity of your complaint following [Ms J’s] death, particularly the limitations we have to share information… We would always look to respect the confidence of a customer and this duty of confidence survives the individual’s death.”
13. In view of Ms J’s wishes, the Council provided a response restricted to basic information about what had happened. It said that prior to her discharge from hospital, Ms J was assessed and accepted the offer of a place at the supported living accommodation. It said that Ms J had consented to the referral and the support offered, but as she did not comply with the rules of the accommodation she was asked to leave.
14. The Council provided some further information about this particular accommodation, explaining that it was part of a pilot project and setting out the general arrangements for support, monitoring and safeguarding. However it did not go into any specific detail about Ms J’s time there.
15. I contacted the Council, who said Ms J had told staff on several occasions that she did not want information about her contact with social care shared with Mr and Mrs Y. The Council provided extracts from its electronic care record system of Ms J’s conversations with social workers, which said that she did not wish for information to be shared with Mr and Mrs Y.
16. I recognise it is very difficult for Mr and Mrs Y not to be given the explanations they are seeking about their daughter’s care, particularly when she did share information with them about her healthcare. I also recognise they dispute the Council’s view that Ms J had capacity, saying there were many occasions when Ms J lacked capacity to make rational decisions.
17. However, in view of the information in the Council’s records about Ms J’s wishes on information sharing, there is no fault by the Council in how it responded to their complaints. It has given Mr and Mrs Y some information about what happened, and provided details about the wider arrangements and support available.
18. Therefore, it seems unlikely that an investigation by the Ombudsman would achieve the explanations Mr and Mrs Y are seeking. There is no evidence of fault in how the Council decided it could not share information with Mr and Mrs Y. Its reason for not doing so is in line with Ms J’s wishes as documented in the social care records. Any consideration by the Ombudsman must also take into account the documented wishes of Ms J and we would not therefore be able to provide any additional explanations to Mr and Mrs Y over and above those already provided by the Council.
19. Because of this, the Ombudsmen will not investigate Mr and Mrs Y’s complaint about the Council.

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Final decision

20. The Ombudsmen will not investigate Mr and Mrs Y’s complaint about the Council as it would be unlikely to achieve anything further for Mr and Mrs Y.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsmen

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman