Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the lack of care and support received from the Council’s children and adult social care services. This is because the Council agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the lack of care and support received from the Council’s children and adult social care services. In particular, he complains:
• There was no transition planning from children social care to adult social care.
• He was not allocated a leaving care social worker and subsequently received no leaving care support.
• The Council stopped his adult social care abruptly and with no consultation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), 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. The Council responded to Mr X’s complaints under its corporate complaint procedure.
6. If we were to investigate, it is likely we would find fault because the Council should have responded to the complaint under the statutory children’s complaints procedure. I am satisfied this will have caused distress to Mr X as he has not had the opportunity to have his complaints fully considered under the statutory process.
7. We therefore invited the Council to remedy this by completing the following:
• Apologise to Mr X for not dealing with his complaint under the statutory children’s complaints procedure.
• Investigate Mr X’s complaint at stage two of the statutory process by appointing an independent investigator and independent person to consider the complaints.

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Agreed action

8. The Council agreed to resolve the complaint and will complete the above within four weeks of the final decision.

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Final decision

9. We have upheld this complaint because the Council agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman