Summary: Mrs X complained on behalf of her son Mr Y, that the Council failed to take action to provide him suitable independent living. There was delay and a lack of specific information about housing which was crucial to the process and which caused significant distress to Mrs X and her health while she continued to provide a significant level of care to Mr Y. A suitable remedy for the injustice caused by the fault is agreed.

The complaint

1. Mrs X, on behalf of her son Mr Y, complains the Council has failed to take action to provide him suitable independent living.
2. Mrs X is under considerable stress caring for Mr Y due to her own ill health and the situation is becoming untenable.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. As part of the investigation, I have:
• considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided;
• discussed the issues with the complainant;
• sent my draft decision to both the Council and the complainant and taken account of their comments in reaching my final decision.

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What I found

Key facts

6. This section sets out the key events in this case and is not intended to be a detailed chronology.
7. Mr Y is an adult with significant disabilities and requires 24 hour support and supervision to ensure his safety and wellbeing. He cannot be left alone. His current care package is for two carers for 6 hours a day for five days a week and on the other two days he attends a day centre with two carers. Mrs X provides care for the remaining hours which has been more difficult since her husband died three years ago. Mrs X’s own health is now suffering. She told me she requires medical intervention but is delaying surgery until Mr Y is suitably rehoused.
8. The information provided shows that discussions about Mr Y living independently started in 2014. This included looking at supported living environments, but the schemes were unable to meet Mr Y’s needs. Mrs X says that the only option left was for Mr Y to join the housing register and seek a socially rented property. In December 2023, Mr Y was offered a flat from the housing register. However, he was unable to move in and the Council says this was because it would not be affordable to provide the amount of care required to him to live in a single dwelling.
9. Mrs X complained to the Council in December 2023 saying the offer of the flat was a rare opportunity for Mr Y to become independent and queried how long he would have to continue to wait. She complained of indirect discrimination saying the Council had a duty under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments and the failure to do so was leaving Mr Y in a precarious position.
10. The Council responded to Mrs X’s complaint on 12 March 2024. It apologised for the time taken to respond to her complaint. It said that appropriate assessments must be in place prior to a person moving into any form of housing. It said this is because there is a level of planning required to achieve a safe and supportive transition. It said its Combined Placement and Sourcing Team (CPST) was looking at available options to support Mr Y to move out of the family home. It apologised if any delays or decisions had caused Mrs X anxiety and distress and said it was working hard to rectify this.
11. Information provided by the Council in response to my enquiries shows CPST received the request to help Mr Y in January 2024. The case was allocated to a support broker on 9 April who contacted a care provider on 29 May. The Council contacted a further eight care providers on 12 July. Mrs X visited a supported living property in July and a formal placement was offered on 1 August. The funding for the placement was agreed on 5 September. Mrs X began the process of introducing Mr Y to the property hoping he would move in at the beginning of November.
12. The Council completed a needs assessment for Mr Y on 8 August 2024. This found that Mr Y requires 24-hour support and supervision to ensure his safety at all times. It noted that Mrs X gets very little time to herself as she has to be at home every evening. It was noted that while Mr Y is happy with the arrangements, Mrs X finds it very difficult and would welcome regular respite. It noted that a full assessment for NHS continuing healthcare was recommended.

Analysis

13. This complaint concerns the failure to provide accommodation for Mr Y independent from his mother, Mrs X. Mr Y is in receipt of a package of care from the Council and there is nothing to suggest his assessed eligible needs are not being met. The Council continues to review and assess Mr Y’s care needs in an appropriate way.
14. Accommodation was found for Mr Y but shortly before he was due to move in November 2024, the offer was withdrawn. The Council is now looking for alternative accommodation as a matter of urgency. This is unfortunate but there is nothing to suggest any fault by the Council. I am therefore considering whether there was any fault in the process prior to the offer of alternative housing to Mr Y in August 2024.
15. Finding housing for Mr Y independent from his family home has been discussed for several years. It has been a more pressing issue since the death of Mr X as Mrs X has had to provide a significant amount of care alone. Mrs X’s health is deteriorating and so ensuring her son is properly cared for has been a priority.
16. The information provided shows that while the issue has been raised and discussed, there has not been any clear planning or guidance provided on how this will be achieved. The Council does not have any specific policy or procedure setting out the process for considering and assessing independent living. While not having a written procedure is not necessarily fault, it can be helpful to both service users, carers and staff if there is one so the correct actions can be taken.
17. Mrs X was told to make apply to the housing register for a property for Mr Y. She did this and in December 2023 a suitable flat was offered to Mr Y. However, Mr Y was unable to move in because the appropriate level of support was not forthcoming. In response to her written complaint, the Council said that assessments had to be completed prior to a person moving. There is nothing to suggest the Council ever completed such an assessment even when it knew alternative housing was something Mr Y required. In response to my enquiries, the Council says that a single dwelling would not be an option for Mr Y due to the cost of the care he needs.
18. The Council has been aware for some time that Mr Y required housing independent from the family home and Mrs X. I have not seen any evidence to suggest this was properly dealt with before Mrs X made a formal complaint. It was only after she did this that CPST became involved. The chronology of its actions shows that while CPST was passed the case in January 2024 a case worker was not allocated for a further three months. Only one care provider was contacted following this and it took a further two months for concerted action to be taken.
19. The failure to properly explain the process to Mrs X, the delay in passing the case to CPST and then the delay in that team taking action is fault. Once proper action was taken a suitable property was identified and approved. However, the delay and drift in taking this action meant Mrs X had to continue to provide a level of care for Mr Y that was causing her significant distress and not allowing her to focus on her own health.

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Agreed action

20. To remedy the injustice caused as a result of the fault identified in this case the Council will, within one month of my final decision, take the following action:
• Apologise to Mrs X and Mr Y;
• Make Mrs X a symbolic payment of £1,000 to acknowledge the distress caused by the delay in taking action; and
• Review its processes to ensure that suitable information is available to service users, their families and Council staff to ensure similar fault does not arise again.
21. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

22. I have completed my investigation with a finding of fault for the reasons explained in this statement. The Council has agreed to implement the actions I have recommended. These appropriately remedy any injustice caused by fault.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman