Service improvements

London Borough of Lambeth

Showing service improvements between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022

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 17 cases with service improvements

Export results (CSV)

Downloads the current filtered list of service improvement decisions for London Borough of Lambeth as a CSV file.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 006 556)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 24-Mar-2022

    Summary

    Miss F complains the Council has failed to accurately assess her brother’s (Mr D) financial contributions for residential care. She also says the Council has not provided accurate and timely information relating to Mr D’s care invoices and reviews. We have identified numerous and serious failings by the Council which demonstrate poor administrative practice. In particular, the Council delayed by three years in completing a financial assessment to establish Mr D’s care contributions. It also failed to provide accurate and timely invoices to Miss F, send her care reviews and address matters during its own complaints procedure. These failings caused Miss F and Mr D a significant and personal injustice and the Council has agreed to remedy this.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review its policies and practices with respect to sharing care reviews, conducting financial assessments in a reasonable time, andissuing invoices at regular intervals. The purpose of the review is to implement services improvements (including training) for the benefit of customers in the future.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 006 085)

    Category: Benefits and tax Date: 24-Feb-2022

    Summary

    Ms C complained about the Council’s response when she requested a discretionary council tax reduction. We found some fault with the way the Council handled her request. We also found fault with the Council for a delay making reasonable adjustments for Ms C. The Council agreed actions to remedy the injustice to Ms C.

    Service improvements

    Remind its council tax officers (and any other relevant staff) of the Council’s reasonable adjustment duty under the Equality Act 2010. It should use this case as an example.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 005 720)

    Category: Transport and highways Date: 27-Mar-2022

    Summary

    Mr X complains the Council did not cancel parking charge notices for his stolen car. This led to unnecessary enforcement action. Mr X also complains about the enforcement officers behaviour which caused significant distress. The Ombudsman finds fault with the Council for not cancelling the notice which resulted in unnecessary enforcement action. The Council has agreed to pay a financial remedy and consider service improvements.

    Service improvements

    The Council has agreed to review how it ensures PCN’s are cancelled where appropriate proof is received. This should include how it ensures PCN’s are not missed and does not result in inappropriate court and bailiff action.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 005 670)

    Category: Housing Date: 24-Feb-2022

    Summary

    Mrs X complained the Council wrongly placed her in a temporary accommodation which was not properly set up for the individual billing of utilities and council tax. We found the Council at fault for placing Mrs X in the accommodation without ensuring it was properly set up for individual billing, and its failure to resolve the matters when she brought it to it and its Agent’s attention. The Council agreed to apologise and make payment to Mrs X. It also agreed for it, or its Agent, to take responsibility for her utility and council tax costs until the individual billing issues are resolved.

    Service improvements

    e)remind it staff the Council remains responsible for the actions taken by its Housing and Temporary Accommodation Agent on its behalf, or as part of the exercise of the Council’s functions; and f)remind its Agent to ensure it only places individuals in temporary accommodations which have been set up to facilitate individual billing of utilities and council tax, unless in circumstances where such charges are included in the rent.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 005 622)

    Category: Environment and regulation Date: 16-Dec-2021

    Summary

    Mr X and Ms Y complained the Council services had not done enough to help alleviate nuisance caused by a neighbouring food business. We upheld the complaint finding fault in the service provided by the Council’s public protection and planning services, causing distress. The Council accepted these findings and at the end of this statement we explain the action it has agreed to take to remedy this injustice.

    Service improvements

    The Council will consider what minimum standards its public protection service should adopt for keeping in touch with those who report potential nuisance taking place and consider how it can incorporate such service standards into existing policies.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (21 004 301)

    Category: Housing Date: 24-Jan-2022

    Summary

    Miss X complained the Council stopping making Discretionary Housing Payments to cover the shortfall between her benefits and rent. The Council was at fault for failing to properly consider if Miss X’s property was affordable before ending its relief homelessness duty and for failing to consider if it owed her a new homelessness duty when she accrued significant rent arrears. This caused Miss X distress. The Council has agreed to pay Miss X’s rent arrears and ongoing rent shortfall and consider whether it owes Miss X a homelessness duty. It should also remind its staff of the proper process.

    Service improvements

    The Council will remind staff they must consider whether someone's accomodation is affordable when deciding to end the relief homelessness duty.The Council will remind staff that significant rent arrears and threats of eviction should both trigger consideration of whether the Council owes a person a homelessness duty.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (20 014 123)

    Category: Housing Date: 19-Sep-2021

    Summary

    Mr B complained about the Council’s involvement in the decision that the property where he was living was unsafe which meant he could no longer live there. He said the Council failed to provide any accommodation for him while it considered his application as homeless. And failed to help him to find accommodation and decided he was not in priority need. He said the Council failed to deal with his requests for a review of the decisions. As a result he had no accommodation for over nine months and had to sleep in his car. There was fault that caused injustice to Mr B. The Council will apologise, make a payment to him, reissue the decision and take other action to ensure the errors will not recur.

    Service improvements

    The Council will review its procedures to ensure that correct informationis given to homeless applicants and that Personal Housing Plans are fullycompleted to ensure that it complies with the duty to take reasonable steps tohelp applicants secure accommodation.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (20 014 023)

    Category: Planning Date: 25-Nov-2021

    Summary

    Mrs X complains that the Council breached an assurance that it would call in a planning application. The Council is at fault as it wrongly informed Mrs X that a planning application would be considered by the Planning Applications Committee, delayed in notifying Mrs X of the error and the chair did not consider all the relevant information when considering whether to call in the application. These faults caused distress and uncertainty to Mrs X which the Council has agreed to remedy by apologising and making a payment of £250 to her.

    Service improvements

    By training or other means, ensures the chair of the PAC is aware they should consider all relevant information when deciding whether to call in an application and, in making that decision, be alert to the risk of pre-determination.Provides evidence of the Council’s record keeping of its consideration of whether to call in an application to PAC under its terms of reference.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (20 012 977)

    Category: Planning Date: 16-Dec-2021

    Summary

    Mr X and Ms Y complained the Council services had not done enough to help alleviate nuisance caused by a neighbouring food business. We upheld the complaint finding fault in the service provided by the Council’s public protection and planning services, causing distress. The Council accepted these findings and at the end of this statement we explain the action it has agreed to take to remedy this injustice.

    Service improvements

    The Council will consider what minimum standards its planning enforcement service should adopt for keeping in touch with those who report potential breaches or offences taking place and consider how it can incorporate such service standards into existing policies.

  • London Borough of Lambeth (20 012 738)

    Category: Children's care services Date: 21-Sep-2021

    Summary

    We find fault with the Council for failing to record the full details and outcomes of a meeting with Miss B about contact arrangements for her children. We also find fault with the way the Council considered Miss B’s complaint during the statutory complaint process. This caused Miss B an injustice. The Council agrees actions to remedy the injustice.

    Service improvements

    • Remind its adjudication officers and stage three panel members of the difference between fault (maladministration), injustice and remedy.

LGO logogram

Review your privacy settings

Required cookies

These cookies enable the website to function properly. You can only disable these by changing your browser preferences, but this will affect how the website performs.

View required cookies

Analytical cookies

Google Analytics cookies help us improve the performance of the website by understanding how visitors use the site.
We recommend you set these 'ON'.

View analytical cookies

In using Google Analytics, we do not collect or store personal information that could identify you (for example your name or address). We do not allow Google to use or share our analytics data. Google has developed a tool to help you opt out of Google Analytics cookies.

Privacy settings