Case Ref: 22 006 364 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council has agreed to review its procedures for closing homelessness cases due to loss of contact, to ensure it always tries to make contact with the applicant before closing the case.
• The Council has agreed to remind officers of the correct procedure for reopening homelessness cases, to ensure the housing team is notified when a homeless duty has been accepted.
• The Council has agreed to highlight this case to relevant complaints officers and take action to improve the way it responds to complaints.

Case Ref: 22 006 282 Category: Education Sub Category: Alternative provision

• The Council agreed to remind relevant staff that the Council has a duty to consider individual circumstances, at the time, in deciding whether it has a statutory duty to provide alternative provision for children out of school due to illness, exclusion or otherwise. The Council should ensure staff properly record the decision and the reasons for it at the time.

Case Ref: 22 005 096 Category: Transport and highways Sub Category: Parking and other penalties

• The Council will confirm to the Ombudsman it has issued its policy on dropped kerb applications and carried out staff training on that policy.
• The Council will update its website to reflect its new policy on dropped kerb applications. This should include that the Council requires a clearance distance, typically 45cm, from obstructions like telephone poles. It should also include that applications for a dropped kerb may be refused if such a distance is not possible.

Case Ref: 22 003 882 Category: Transport and highways Sub Category: Other

• Review its internal procedure for ensuring compliance with, and providing evidence of, any future recommendations made by the Ombudsman.

Case Ref: 22 003 384 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Assessment and care plan

• Review its working practices to screen Care Match bids before they are forwarded to the client or their representative to ensure (a) they meet the person’s assessed care needs and (b) the person meets any of the provider’s admissions criteria relating to age, personal or nursing care or client group;
• Review the need for written advice to staff about searching for providers not currently registered on Care Match when the client has complex needs or is in a client group known to be particularly hard to place;
• Remind officers who investigate complaints about the importance of giving accurate information to service-users when they convey decisions about a request for a change of social worker.

Case Ref: 22 003 062 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• The Council has agreed to provide an update on the action it is taking to end the use of bed and breakfast as accommodation for homeless households. If the Council has not significantly reduced the length of time homeless families are staying in bed and breakfast accommodation since it last provided an update in April 2022, it will review its action plan and tell the Ombudsman what further steps it will take to address this issue.

Case Ref: 22 002 998 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• The Council agreed to write to all people who asked for a review of their homelessness decision since March 2021 where the Council overturned its original decision outside the allowable time to complete a review. It should apologise for the delays in completing the review and tell those affected that they can complain if they believe any delays had an impact on them.
• The Council agreed to develop a plan to complete all outstanding homelessness reviews which have been waiting more than the maximum time allowed in law. It will share its plan with the Ombudsman and keep the Ombudsman updated on the process towards completing those reviews.
• The Council agreed to review its information sharing arrangements between its choice based letting scheme and the Council's housing team. It should consider whether it can better share information about decisions made by its homelessness team which affect applicants' priorities under the choice based letting scheme so that such priority changes are made as quickly as possible and the correct priority dates are used.

Case Ref: 22 002 927 Category: Planning Sub Category: Enforcement

• Remind those involved in responding to complaints of the stage one and stage two response deadlines.
• Review its procedure for investigating alleged breaches of planning to ensure these are completed without delay.
• Review its procedure for responding to member enquiries. It should consider whether it should send responses to both the councillor and the person they are representing.

Case Ref: 22 001 700 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will create an action plan to ensure where a change of caseworker is necessary for children with education, health and care plans that decisions, reasons and actions about the plan are accurately and thoroughly recorded and followed through by the following caseworker.

Case Ref: 22 001 224 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• The Council has agreed to provide training and/or guidance to its officers about the duty to provide interim accommodation. The Council should ensure officers are aware that the legal test for having 'reason to believe' someone is or may be homeless is very low, and if the Council needs to make enquiries to establish if a person is homeless, there must be a reason to believe they may be homeless and so the interim accommodation duty applies.
• The Council has agreed to remind relevant officers of the importance of clear record keeping and responding to correspondence in a timely manner.