Case Ref: 25 002 921 Category: Education Sub Category: Alternative provision

• Provide guidance to staff and review its processes for acknowledging and implementing remedies agreed with the Ombudsman.

Case Ref: 24 023 264 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• The Council will within three months of the date of this decision review how it records information about accessibility of interim accommodation so that it does not offer unsuitable accommodation twice to an applicant.

Case Ref: 24 020 300 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Refuse and recycling

Case Ref: 24 015 611 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• Consider why there were delays putting in place some of the provision in the Education, Health and Care Plan and what changes it can make to prevent this from happening in future. The Council should report back to the Ombudsman with any improvements it intends to make.

Case Ref: 24 007 483 Category: Planning Sub Category: Planning applications

• The Council agreed to issue a reminder to the Chairs and Members of its planning committees on its existing procedure, where Members voted to reject a planning application against officer's advice. The procedure required the Chair to ask Members of committee to defer the application to the next meeting. The Council was in the process of reviewing the procedure and this may change. But in the meantime it agreed that if Members were to depart from this procedure they would record reasons for that departure.

Case Ref: 24 002 666 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will provide evidence to the Ombudsman of the service improvements it is making to improve the timeliness of EHC needs assessments. This could include an update regarding the recruitment of Educational Psychologists and SEND staff, any improvements to internal processes or departmental changes.

Case Ref: 24 014 400 Category: Benefits and tax Sub Category: Council tax

• Improve internal guidance or undertake staff training to ensure accurate and consistent advice on council tax liabilities, particularly in relation to HMOs and exemptions.

Case Ref: 24 012 966 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Disabled facilities grants

• The Council has agreed to: by team meetings, staff circulars, or training, remind staff about when to carry out social care reviews and that duties under the Care Act 2014 are ongoing even if other Council departments are involved,
• remind relevant housing and social care staff to work together when there are adaptations so people’s needs are met when completing adaptation work;
• review the Council’s process/policy to ensure it includes a specific step to consider how people’s care needs are to be met when there is adaptation work.

Case Ref: 24 007 625 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Refuse and recycling

• Carry out a review of the issues Mrs X has had with her assisted collections, (to cover at least the last 12 weeks) and determine the cause of the issues.
• Work with provider B to review its waste collection monitoring arrangements to ensure they are robust and effective in identifying and resolving any problems and in improving service levels.
• Ensure the review and associated action plan, is considered monthly at the contract meetings between provider B and the Council. Ensure this takes place over the next 12 months to enable a meaningful period of monitoring.

Case Ref: 24 005 216 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council will send a reminder to officers about the need to consider whether a housing applicant has exceptional circumstances which warrant inclusion on the direct offer list and to ensure decisions about that are communicated to the housing applicant.