Summary: We will not investigate this late complaint about the quality of domiciliary care. There is not a good reason for the delay in the complainant bringing the matter to the Ombudsman.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained about poor standards of domiciliary care provided to her parents, Mr and Mrs Y, from a Council-commissioned care provider. Her concerns included inadequate personal care, poor handling of medication and catheters, and insufficient motivation for Mr and Mrs Y to get washed and dressed. Ms X said the matter caused her significant distress. She wanted the charges for care to be waived.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 or care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Ms X’s complaint is about a care provider that worked in her parents’ home until March 2023. The care provider issued a complaint response to her in March 2023 which signposted her to the Ombudsman.
6. Ms X then also complained to the Council, and it issued a response in July 2023, again signposting her to the Ombudsman. Ms X contacted us in March 2024.
7. The law requires complainants to bring complaints to us within 12 months of becoming aware of the matter, unless there are good reasons for not doing so. All issues Ms X complains about occurred more than 12 months before she brought her complaint to us. She could have contacted us in March 2023 after receiving the response from the care provider. She also waited a further eight months after receiving the Council’s complaint response before coming to us. There is not a good reason for the delay, and we will not now investigate the matter.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Ms X’s late complaint because there is not a good reason for the delay in her contacting the Ombudsman.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman