LGO Individual Decisions

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to appropriately safeguard Mrs X’s children whilst in foster care. This is because an investigation would not lead to a different outcome for Mrs X.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about arrangements for contact with Mr X’s grandchildren. The complaint is late and there is also not enough evidence of fault with the Council’s actions. Even if we investigated, we could not achieve the outcome Mr X wants.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the contents of her child’s Education, Health and Care Plan. This is would have been reasonable for Mrs X to appeal to the tribunal.

Summary: Mrs X complained the Council failed to maintain her child’s Education, Health and Care plan after she moved into the Council’s area. She says the Council reduced the provision, refused to provide agreed budget payments and did not meet its own deadlines for response times to her complaint. We found the Council at fault, which caused Mrs X injustice. The Council should make payment and apologise to Mrs X.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council refused to change his children’s social worker. Further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

Summary: Mrs X complained the Council failed to provide her son, Y, with suitable education and support during the 2023/24 academic year. We found the Council was at fault for not arranging alternative provision when Y stopped attending school in January 2024, and for delays in issuing the outcome of his annual review and responding to correspondence. This meant Y missed education for around a term and a half at a critical stage, and Mrs X experienced avoidable frustration and uncertainty. The Council has agreed to our recommendations.

Summary: Mr X complained the Council provided incorrect and misleading information about funding his mother’s residential care. We found the Council at fault because of poor communication and delay which caused avoidable distress, frustration and uncertainty. The Council has agreed to apologise and make a symbolic payment to Mr X and take action to improve its service.

Summary: We cannot investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council committing a data breach during adoption proceedings because it lies outside our jurisdiction. The law prevents us from investigating complaints about matters that are being, or have been, considered in court proceedings. We have no discretion to do so.

Summary: Mrs X complained her sister, Mrs Y, is in an unsuitable care home for her needs.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the actions of the Council’s children’s services. Some elements are late and have formed part of court proceedings, some are about matters that the Courts are better placed to consider, and there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by investigating others.

Summary: Ms D complains the Council failed to provide suitable support to her and safeguard her. The Council is at fault for failing to make proper transition arrangements for Ms D, to consider safeguarding alerts and for failing to complete carers’ assessments. This has caused uncertainty about whether Ms D and her family would have had services earlier which would have met their needs more suitably and reduced the distress caused by the Council’s lack of action. To remedy the complaint the Council will, apologise to Ms D and her family, make symbolic payments and service improvements.

Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint that the Council has failed in its duty to make alternative educational provision for her child. There is insufficient evidence of fault to warrant an investigation.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the sale of council land. This is

Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council pursuing her for her husband’s care fees, despite a social worker telling her his care home place would be free of charge. We will not investigate this complaint.

Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about charges for care services she received in 2022. She says she should not have to pay the charges as she was not aware she was being charged for the care services until June 2022. This is because the complaint is late and there are no good reasons to exercise discretion to consider the late complaint. In addition, the claimed fault has not caused any significant injustice.

Summary: Ms X and Mr D complained about the Council’s failure to provide their son, who has special educational needs, with school transport from both his parents’ separate addresses. We did not find the Council to be at fault because it applied its policy when it used its discretion not have to provide transport from Mr D's address because it was in another council’s area.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s actions and decisions regarding a privately-owned hedge next to part of the pathway on the road where he lives. There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making process to warrant us investigating and we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X seeks from his complaint.

Summary: Mr X complained the Council failed to protect his late sister in-law, Ms Y, from financial abuse. There was no fault in the way the Council investigated Mr X’s concerns under its safeguarding procedures. However, the Council was at fault for not applying for deputyship to manage Ms Y’s finances when her capital reached the limit set out in the Council’s policy. This caused Mr X and his wife distress and uncertainty. The Council has already apologised to Mr X. It did not cause an injustice to Ms Y as there was no evidence the Council mismanaged her finances. In addition, the Council ha

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s decision not to share the personal details of a family member. The Information Commissioner’s Office is better placed to deal with this complaint.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about his mother Mrs Y’s domiciliary care, arranged by the Council. There is insufficient significant injustice to Mrs Y, Mr X or other family to warrant us investigating and investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

Summary: Mr X complained the Council wrongly decided his father Mr Y had deprived himself of assets to avoid care costs. There was fault in how the Council considered this, which causes doubt about the outcome of its decision making. The Council agreed to apologise, pay a financial remedy to Mr X and Mr Y for distress, and reconsider its deprivation of assets case for Mr Y. It will also deliver training to its staff about deprivation of assets and ensure its financial assessment appeals process aligns with its published policies.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the outcome of the Council’s care needs assessment. There is not enough evidence of fault in how the Council completed its assessment to justify our involvement. In any event, the Council is currently completing a review of that assessment. Further investigation by the Ombudsman would not lead to a different outcome.

We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council delayed a decision for an Education Health and Care Plan. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council in the length of time it took. We will not investigate his complaint about how the Council communicated this decision as there is no significant injustice to Mr X. Finally, we will not investigate the Council’s decision not to issue an Education Health and Care Plan. This is because Mr X has a right of appeal about this and it would be reasonable to expect him to use it.

Summary: We uphold this complaint that the Council did not use the statutory procedure for complaints about children’s services to respond to Mrs X’s complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve the matter by providing a suitable remedy for the injustice caused to Mrs X.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s care planning and decision-making related to his accommodation and support after he turns 18. The Council is considering his complaint under the children’s statutory complaints procedure and in the process of arranging a stage three panel. It is reasonable to allow the Council to complete the statutory process.