The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this late complaint about Mrs C being locked in her bedroom in 2019. This is because we could not add to the response Mr E received from Mrs C’s care provider in 2020 or achieve a different outcome.
The complaint
Mr E says his late mother, Mrs C, was falsely imprisoned in a locked bedroom in 2019 causing her mental torment. Mr E wants a full investigation into what happened and the Care Provider to give him answers.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council/care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended) We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Care Provider met with Mr E in 2020 following an investigation into concerns he raised about Mrs C’s care, including his concern she had been locked in her room in December 2019. The Care Provider explained this was an isolated decision made by a member of staff without discussion with higher manager at the time. The Care Provider advised Mr E the individual staff member was being dealt with thorough internal disciplinary procedures.
There is no good reason for us to investigate this late complaint now. We could not achieve a different outcome for Mr E to the one he was provided with in 2020. The Care Provider explained the particular staff member was being dealt with through internal procedures, we cannot investigate personnel matters. We could not provide a remedy for Mrs C even if we investigated and found evidence of fault as she has now passed away.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr E’s late complaint because we could not achieve a different outcome to the one Mr E has already been given.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman