Service improvements

Essex County Council

Showing service improvements between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024

Find out more about service improvements

When we find fault, we can recommend improvements to systems and processes where they haven’t worked properly, so that others do not suffer from these same problems in future. Common examples are policy changes; procedural reviews; and staff training. Service improvements from decisions are published for 5 years and those from reports are published for 10 years.

Showing 1 - 10 of 23 cases with service improvements

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Downloads the current filtered list of service improvement decisions for Essex County Council as a CSV file.

  • Essex County Council (23 011 983)

    Category: Education Date: 06-Mar-2024

    Summary

    There was a sixteen week delay in the Council issuing an amended final EHC Plan after an annual review meeting. There was also a failure to resolve the complaint at local level. This caused injustice. The Council will apologise, make a symbolic payment and consider service improvements.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review whether staffing changes have improved service delivery times, including regarding the handling of complaints and compliance with EHC Plan annual review timescales.

  • Essex County Council (23 010 114)

    Category: Education Date: 13-Mar-2024

    Summary

    Mrs X complained the Council failed to amend her son, Y’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan in line with the statutory guidance, to provide a personal budget and to provide appropriate education for him between April 2022 and December 2023. The Council delayed issuing an amended EHC Plan and failed to provide the provision in Y’s plan from April 2022 to November 2023. The Council agreed to apologise to Mrs X, reimburse her for the provision she paid for and pay her £6,500 to recognise the injustice caused to her and the provision Y missed.

    Service improvements

    The Council will remind staff completing annual reviews that final amended Education, Health and Care Plans must be issued within 12 weeks of the annual review meeting.The Council will provide relevant staff with written guidance on the Council’s non-delegable responsibilities under Section 42 Children and Families Act, and what action staff should take when they become aware a child or young person is not receiving the provision in their Education, Health and Care Plan.

  • Essex County Council (23 009 545)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 19-Mar-2024

    Summary

    Mrs X complained about the actions of the care provider arranged by the Council after her father, Mr Y, fell at home. There was fault in how the care provider, acting on behalf of the Council, arranged for Mr Y to go into a care home, without seeking the Council’s approval first. This led to Mr Y being charged for care he would not have been. The Council agreed to apologise, reimburse some of the care fees Mr Y was charged and remind its providers about the correct procedure to follow in future.

    Service improvements

    The Council agreed to remind care providers which it uses to provide home care about the process they should follow when someone requires an urgent change to their care. This could be through a provider bulletin or similar, if the Council publishes such a bulletin.

  • Essex County Council (23 007 958)

    Category: Children's care services Date: 27-Sep-2023

    Summary

    We found fault with the Council’s delay in completing stage two of the children’s statutory complaint procedure for the complainant (Mrs X). This fault caused Mrs X injustice. The Council agreed to apologise, complete the stage two investigation and make a symbolic payment to recognise Mrs X’s distress. The Council also agreed to review any overdue complaints considered at stage two of the children’s statutory complaint procedure and prepare a plan of action to prevent any further delays.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review all the complaints considered at stage two of the children's statutory complaint procedure for more than 13 weeks and:identify reasons for the delays in completing the stage two investigation;prepare a plan of action with the timescales to ensure the stage two investigations are completed without any further delay.The Council will provide us with evidence of completing this actions.

  • Essex County Council (23 007 358)

    Category: Education Date: 22-Jan-2024

    Summary

    There was excessive delay in completing an annual review and responding to complaints. There was also fault in the way the Council handled a request for education direct payments. This caused a loss of special educational provision and unnecessary distress, time and trouble. The Council will apologise, make symbolic payments and consider how to improve the timeliness of its service. The complaint is upheld.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review why there was such excessive delay in the handling of this complaint and the EHC plan review process and consider if this part of a wider systemic problem. It will advise the Ombudsman what actions it intends to take to improve timeliness of annual reviews and complaint handling.

  • Essex County Council (23 007 066)

    Category: Education Date: 20-Mar-2024

    Summary

    There was fault by the Council. There was delay of one year in completing the Education, Health and Care Plan needs assessment process. There was also delay in arranging alternative education provision once the Council became aware that a child was not in school. An apology, payment and service improvements remedy the injustice caused from loss of suitable education.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review its processes to ensure it issues final EHC Plans within statutory timescales.The Council will review its processes to ensure that it consults appropriately with schools without delay.The Council will reviews its processes to ensure that where its SEND team become aware of a child who is not attending school, whether or not they have an EHC Plan, a decision on alternative provision is made without delay.

  • Essex County Council (23 006 298)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 12-Feb-2024

    Summary

    Ms B complained about the Council and Primecare’s role in her father’s care in the period before he died. There was fault in the care provided by Primecare and in the complaint handling by both Primecare and the Council. Both should apologise to Ms B and make a payment.

    Service improvements

    The Council will take steps to ensure that Primecare has taken action to ensure that the faults found cannot recur.The Council will provide evidence to show it has taken steps to ensure Primecare has in place an effective and accessible complaint process.The Council will ensure that it has in place guidance for staff to ensure it is clear how complaints about adult social care service providers are considered and that it has been drawn to the attention of staff dealing with such complaints.

  • Essex County Council (23 005 361)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 20-Nov-2023

    Summary

    The complainant (Mr X) said the Council failed when carrying out a financial assessment and the Deferred Payment Agreement (DPA) process for his late father (Mr Y). Mr X also complained about the way the Council dealt with his complaint. We found fault in all matters complained about. This fault caused injustice to Mr Y and Mr X. The Council agreed to apologise, pay to Mr Y’s estate part of the residential nursing fees which would have not been incurred if not for the Council’s failings and make payments for Mr X’s distress and time and trouble. The Council also agreed to carry out some service improvements.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review its process of registering referrals for financial assessments to ensure theCouncil records any requests for a financial assessment and the date of sending financial assessments with all the attached documents to the service user.The Council will review its Deferred Payment Agreement process to ensure:a) service users receive detailed information tailored to their individual circumstances at the beginning of the process;b) the Council makes a decision on eligibility without delay;c) service users have clarity what documents they have to provide for a DPA;The Council will improve communication between various teams providing Adult Social Care services to ensure there is an exchange of information and communications without involving service users;The Council will train its staff dealing with Adult Social Care complaints to ensure the compliance with the Council’s Complaints and Representations Policy 2022.

  • Essex County Council (23 004 613)

    Category: Education Date: 24-Sep-2023

    Summary

    Mrs X complained about delay and poor communications while the Council carried out an education, care and health needs assessment for her daughter. We upheld the complaint, finding delay. This caused injustice to Mrs X because of the resultant uncertainty created. The Council accepts these findings. At the end of this statement, we set out the action it has agreed to take to remedy Mrs X’s injustice and make service improvements.

    Service improvements

    As a result of this complaint, the Council recognised that it needed better communications with parents when education, health and care plans were subject to delay. It agreed that it would consider policy options for how it could improve these, including providing parents with regular updates (say at four or six weeks) when assessments were delayed waiting for education psychology advice or once the 16 week limit had passed for saying if it would issue an education, care and health plan.

  • Essex County Council (23 004 198)

    Category: Education Date: 15-Nov-2023

    Summary

    There was fault by the Council in ensuring the implementation of provision set out in an education, health and care plan. The Council was also entitled to refuse the complainant’s request for a personal budget, but it was at fault because it did not inform her she had the right to request a review of this decision. The Council has agreed to apologise for this, invite her to request a review now, and remind staff of this requirement.

    Service improvements

    The Council has agreed to circulate guidance to all relevant staff, to remind them a decision to refuse a personal budget request carries a formal right of review, and the statutory guidance requires them to inform a requestor of this right, when writing to inform them of the Council’s decision.

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