The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Direct Payments. The Council has apologised for any delay in setting these up. It has also backdated the Direct Payments. Further investigation by the Ombudsman would not lead to a different outcome.
The complaint
Miss X complained the Council took too long to set-up her Direct Payments. She said the Social Worker completing her Adult Social Care assessment told her she could have Direct Payments in October 2023. She said because of that she cancelled her package of care and arranged for a family member to act as her Personal Assistant.
Miss X said the delay in the Council arranging the Direct Payments meant she was without care for six months and had to pay for her own care. She said that affected her mental health. She wants the Council to pay her compensation.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact 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 or continue an investigation if we decide: further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
In November 2023 we issued a Final Decision on complaints Miss X had made about Adult Social Care. We found it had: delayed completing an assessment of her care needs; not refunded money it owed her.
We asked the Council to pay that money back. We also asked the Council to decide whether it would agree to Miss X having Direct Payments so she could arrange her own care. We asked the Council to make that decision by January 2024. The Council wrote to us in January and said it had agreed Miss X could have Direct Payments. It said it referred her to an organisation that supported people with Direct Payments.
In January 2024, Miss X complained to the Council about delay in setting up the Direct Payment and its poor communication with her. The Council responded in April 2024. It apologised for any delay in setting up the Direct Payments. It confirmed it would back date the payments to the start of October 2023. It also apologised about any delays in its communication with her.
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint further. The Council has apologised for any delay starting the Direct Payments and backdated these. That remedies any injustice caused to Miss X. It has also highlighted the faults with the relevant Adult Social Care team. Further investigation by the Ombudsman would not lead to a different outcome.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman