Service improvements

London Borough of Sutton

Showing service improvements between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025

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 - 6 of 6 cases with service improvements

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

  • London Borough of Sutton (24 008 763)

    Category: Education Date: 21-Feb-2025

    Summary

    The complainant complains that an appeal against a transport to school decision did not consider the issues she raised about why her son’s nearest school was not appropriate. Nor did it explain its reasoning to refuse her application. We uphold the complaint. The Council has agreed to our made recommendations.

    Service improvements

    The Council has changed the wording of its letters acknowledging receipt of second stage appeals. The letters now give more details about how an appellant can let the Council know if they wish to present their case to a panel.The Council has had discussions with appeals panel clerk and panel members “to ensure clarity of proceedings and considerations”.The Council has developed a template to record detailed notes of appeal hearings.The Council has developed a template agenda for appeal hearings and panel deliberations.

  • London Borough of Sutton (24 000 097)

    Category: Housing Date: 10-Oct-2024

    Summary

    Ms X complained about the way the Council dealt with her when she was homeless. The organisation delivering the Council’s homelessness service failed to notify Ms X that the Council no longer owed her the prevention or relief housing duties and delayed deciding if the Council owed her the main housing duty. This was fault. This caused Ms X avoidable frustration, for which the Council will apologise. It will also work with the organisation acting on its behalf to ensure it sends notification letters in future and to reduce delays in main housing duty decisions in all instances.

    Service improvements

    The Council will ask the organisation that delivers its homelessness service to remind its staff that they must issue decision letters when the Council no longer owes an applicant a housing duty.The Council will work with the organisation that delivers its homelessness service to identify what steps it should take to reduce the delays in making housing decisions should it in future experience staff shortages.

  • London Borough of Sutton (23 021 101)

    Category: Housing Date: 28-Nov-2024

    Summary

    We have found fault with the Council for the delay in issuing a formal homelessness decision letter. This delayed Miss X’s right to review and caused her avoidable distress and uncertainty. The Council has agreed to apologise for this delay and pay Miss X £300 for the distress caused.

    Service improvements

    The Council has agreed to take steps to ensure it issues all homelessness decision letters promptly.

  • London Borough of Sutton (23 019 659)

    Category: Children's care services Date: 22-Sep-2024

    Summary

    We found fault on Ms M’s complaint about the Council’s actions when her niece came to stay with her following police involvement which caused her upset and financial loss. It failed to explain to her this was a private family arrangement and what this meant. The agreed action remedies the injustice caused.

    Service improvements

    The Council agreed to ensure officers are reminded of the need to promptly clarify, and set out to involved parties, when a private family arrangement is in place and to give information about its implications.

  • London Borough of Sutton (23 018 267)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 29-Jul-2024

    Summary

    Mrs Y complained on behalf of her mother, Mrs X. Mrs Y complained about how the Council dealt with Mrs X’s residential care charges and the Council’s poor communication with Mrs Y about the matter. There were some faults by the Council which caused injustice to Mrs Y. The Council will take action to remedy the injustice caused.

    Service improvements

    Review the Council’s systems and practice to ensure it completes financial assessments and consider the 12-week property disregard requests (where applicable) in a timely manner.By training or other means remind relevant staff they must issue service users and/or their representatives with written record of the financial assessment outcome at an early stage which clearly sets out their assessed contributions towards their care and details of how the payments will be made.Remind relevant staff of the importance and need to issue care cost invoices to service users and/or representatives in a timely manner and as soon as practicable after they start receiving care.

  • London Borough of Sutton (23 014 280)

    Category: Adult care services Date: 23-May-2024

    Summary

    Mrs B complained that the Council had failed to carry out an assessment of her son Mr C’s needs or provide support to enable him to access the community. We found the Council delayed for six months in carrying out a care needs assessment for Mr C and a carer’s assessment for Mrs B. The Council has agreed to apologise to Mrs B, pay her £300, complete the assessments and improve its procedures for the future.

    Service improvements

    The Council has agreed to consider introducing some form of systemised monitoring to ensure that when requests for an assessment are made, the Council makes a timely decision (ideally within four weeks) as to whether it will carry out an assessment, who will do it and the timeframe for doing it. The monitoring should continue to ensure the assessment is then completed in a timely manner.

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