Case Ref: 20 006 584 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council was at fault for a failure to provide the complainant with information she requested and should have received. During the course of the investigation, it became clear that it had also failed to provide the Ombudsman with information we had requested. Therefore, the Council should take steps to improve its information management systems and to ensure that important information is stored in easily accessible form. It should write to the Ombudsman within two months of the date of this decision and set out what steps it has taken.

Case Ref: 20 006 357 Category: Children's care services Sub Category: Other

• The Council was at fault for delaying its processing of the Adoption Support Fund applications. It agreed to confirm what steps it has taken to ensure that in the future it processes the Adoption Support Fund applications without delay.

Case Ref: 19 018 217 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Charging

• The Council has agreed to share the lessons learned about financial assessments, disability related expenses and its appeal process, with officer and managers involved in these.
• The Council will review its disability related expenses appeal process in light of the lessons learned.
• The Council has agreed to ensure that clients are given an opportunity, as part of the disability related expenses appeal process, to discuss their case directly with the manager responsible for making the decision, when the client requests this.
• The Council will review and revise the wording of paragraph 17.2 of its Charging Policy

Case Ref: 19 015 446 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Charging

• The Council agreed to revise its practice guidance on deprivation of assets to ensure it includes reference to the statutory complaints procedure.

Case Ref: 20 001 844 Category: Education Sub Category: School transport

• Provide evidence it has updated its school transport procedures to ensure it gives clear explanations of its decisions on transport assistance, including what factors it considered and its rationale.
• Provide evidence it has updated its school transport appeal procedure to follow the recommended two-stage procedure in the statutory guidance and include clear timescales in its policy.

Case Ref: 19 021 003 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Charging

• The Council has agreed to establish a clear process which ensures staff gather relevant information to support a request for any property disregard in a timely manner.

Case Ref: 19 020 780 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Direct payments

• The Council agreed to complete a review of lessons learned from this complaint and to outline to the Ombudsman the steps taken to ensure that so far as possible the faults identified in this case do not recur. The faults were associated with the direct payments for the care of a disabled young person.

Case Ref: 19 016 389 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Domiciliary care

• The Council should remind relevant staff of the importance of completing a mental capacity assessment where concerns are raised about the person’s capacity.

Case Ref: 19 010 990 Category: Children's care services Sub Category: Child protection

• The Council will carry out update training for social workers to remind them of the need to consider whether support is required when a child or children go to live with a family member and for when a child or children are transitioned from a family placement to another family placement.

Case Ref: 19 010 820 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Assessment and care plan

• The Council will ensure information about the costs of a meal delivery service is provided to service users in future.