Case Ref: 21 007 446 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• • Update the Ombudsman with the Council’s progress in relation to reducing the number of live EHC assessment case that are over the 20-week statutory timescale.
• • Send a copy of the final decision to the relevant scrutiny committee so there is democratic oversight of the extent of the problems affecting children and families waiting for EHC assessments in Bristol.
• • Develop and implement a mechanism to assist it record when it has chased outstanding information from professionals for EHC assessments

Case Ref: 21 004 999 Category: Other Categories Sub Category: Leisure and culture

• The Council agreed to take steps to ensure case management of allotment cases have proper records of site visits, contact with tenants, photographs taken, and formal notices served.
• The Council agreed to identify the reasons why it failed to take action set out in its stage 2 response and take steps to ensure this failure cannot be repeated in future.
• The Council agreed to identify the reasons why it delayed dealing with the complainant's formal complaint and take steps to ensure this failure is not repeated in the future.
• The Council agreed to identify the reasons why the £250 payment to the complainant was delayed by 3 months and ensure this failure is not repeated on future cases.

Case Ref: 21 002 533 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff that an application to the housing register can also be a homeless application. It will identify a suitable mechanism for staff to notify the appropriate team when this happens.
• The Council has agreed to ensure customer service and other public-facing staff are able properly to identify and deal with cases of homelessness or risk of homelessness. It will provide training as needed.

Case Ref: 21 001 783 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Antisocial behaviour

• The Council agreed to review its current practice of officer visit and assessment decisions to ensure proper records are made and retained
• The Council agreed to review why there was no communication with the complainant when the manager left to avoid any repetition of this failure in the future.

Case Ref: 21 001 155 Category: Children's care services Sub Category: Other

• The Council undertake a review process of the complainant's case. This review should focus oneach individual element of fault identified in this statement. The purpose ofthe review is to consider and implement service improvements for service usersin the future. The Council should provide evidence to the Ombudsman it hasundertaken the review, as well as what service improvements it has identifiedand implemented.

Case Ref: 21 000 033 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Antisocial behaviour

• The Council has agreed to consider how it monitors continuing reports of inappropriate waste disposal, and whether it should be applying the community trigger to reports similarto those made by complainants.
• If the Council finds that it should be applying the community trigger to such reports, the Council has agreed to provide further training and guidance to staff handling such issues.

Case Ref: 20 012 222 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: COVID-19

• The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff to record decision making and contacts on case records.

Case Ref: 20 007 011 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: COVID-19

• The Council has agreed to produce an action plan for ensuring officers: 1. clearly address disputed issues when assessing people’s needs; 2. always produce a care and support plan and share this with the person.

Case Ref: 20 006 835 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Antisocial behaviour

• Remind relevant staff to be careful of the language they use in case recording and correspondence. The Council should be clear on where something is fact and where it is officer opinion based on evidence.

Case Ref: 20 006 019 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Disabled facilities grants

• The Council reviewed its current Accessible Homes policy to introduce aspirational timescales for carrying out occupational therapy assessments and for works agreed after having ‘registered' those works as agreed in principle;
• The Council has introduced a procedure for keeping in regular contact with all those awaiting occupational therapy assessments for possible housing adaptations; this will be at least at two-monthly intervals; it will also consider introducing a numbering system so that all clients of the service know where their place is in the queue.
• To Council has produced a comprehensive action plan that has reviewed outstanding case numbers and times taken to assess cases. This is to be kept under review until these have reduced significantly against measurable targets. Officers have briefed Cabinet on these measures.