The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has welcomed the report by the National Audit Office (NAO), highlighting the precarious nature of local government finances due to increased demand for frontline services.

The report highlights the increasing number of complaints the Ombudsman receives and upholds, as evidence towards its claim that people’s needs are not being met when they access local services.

Nigel Ellis, Chief Executive, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said:

“I welcome the National Audit Office’s report, which throws into sharp relief the pressures on local government finances.

“While our investigations focus on injustices resulting from poor practice, not necessarily a direct correlation with the availability of finances, this report’s findings clearly chime with what we see. We know councils’ need to bear in mind reduced budgets when making decisions on services is having an inevitable and significant impact on their provision.

“We are increasingly finding faults that point to problems with systems and processes, and we are making more recommendations than ever to improve council services beyond remedying the individual’s situation.

“In particular, the NAO cites pressures on Special Educational Needs, adult social care, and housing – and these are the three main casework areas from where we’ve voiced our concerns that wholescale changes are imperative.

“Our recent Triennial Review highlighted our findings in more detail, and made four recommendations to Government on how changes to our powers could help improve local services.”

To improve services for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, the LGSCO has called for the power to investigate the way Education, Health and Care Plans are implemented in schools. It also wants to be able to investigate cases where children and young people with additional needs, including those who don’t meet the threshold for an EHC Plan, are admitted or excluded from schools, and issues with the support they are offered in the school setting.

To improve the way complaints are handled by independent adult social care providers, the Ombudsman has called for mandatory signposting to the LGSCO at the end of the complaints process. Evidence from investigations suggests not all providers do so, denying people independent redress when things go wrong.

Article date: 28 February 2025