Mid Scotland and Fife

Overview

An MSP complained on behalf of his constituent, Mrs C, about the replacement of a mutual path.  In particular, Mrs C alleged that there was no proper consultation in advance of the works being carried out; her suggested alternative was not taken into account; works were inadequately completed; neighbours had similar works completed more cheaply; and South Lanarkshire Council (the Council) failed to adhere to an agreement to resolve her complaint.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that:

• (a)  the Council failed to consult properly with Mrs C in advance of the works being carried out (not upheld);
• (b)  the Council disregarded Mrs C's alternative suggestion (no finding);
• (c)  works were completed inadequately (not upheld);
• (d)  neighbours had similar works completed more cheaply (not upheld); and
• (e)  the Council failed to adhere to an agreement to resolve Mrs C's complaint (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman has no recommendations to make.

Overview

The complainants (Mr and Mrs C) raised concerns about the way a tenancy offer made to them by South Lanarkshire Council (the Council) had been withdrawn.  Mr and Mrs C said that an allegation of anti-social behaviour had been fabricated by the Council and that they had no opportunity to respond to the allegation.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that:

• (a)  the Council offered a property that had been offered to Mr and Mrs C to someone else on 16 February 2006, even though Mr and Mrs C were only informed that the offer had been withdrawn on 20 March 2006 (not upheld);
• (b)  the Council fabricated a complaint of anti-social behaviour against Mr and Mrs C in order to justify having offered the property to someone else (not upheld);
• (c)  Mr and Mrs C were shown no evidence they were responsible for anti-social behaviour (not upheld); and
• (d)  Mr and Mrs C were not given the opportunity to respond to the complaint of anti-social behaviour that had been made against them (upheld).

As the investigation progressed, I identified further concerns and, therefore, informed the Council and Mr and Mrs C that the investigation would additionally consider whether the Council:

• (e)  failed to keep adequate records of their investigation (upheld); and
• (f)  failed to follow their Estate Management Procedures (upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman recommends that the Council:

• (i)  use this report to inform their review of their Estate Management Procedures and address the failures in record-keeping that have been highlighted;
• (ii)  address my concerns regarding failure to follow procedures as part of their planned review of the Estate Management Procedures; and
• (iii)  apologise to Mr and Mrs C for their failure to follow their Estate Management Procedures in investigating the allegations made against them.

The Council have accepted the recommendations and have already begun implementing them.

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Overview

The complainants (Mr and Mrs C) have complained that East Ayrshire Council (the Council) have not responded appropriately to their concerns about injuries and damage to their property by users of a football field.

Specific complaint and conclusion

The complaint which has been investigated is that the Council have not taken appropriate action following injury and damage to property caused by the use of a Council owned sports field (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman has no recommendations to make.

Overview

The complainants, a firm of solicitors (the Solicitors) raised a concern on behalf of their clients, the family of Mr A, that Mr A had not been properly assessed by  Fife NHS Board (the Board) and consequently was not receiving funding for NHS Continuing Care.  The family were also concerned that they had not been able to appeal against the decision not to fund Mr A's care.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that the Board failed to:

• (a)  properly assess Mr A for his continuing health needs and to provide details of the criteria used in deciding to discharge Mr A from in-patient care (not upheld); and
• (b)  consider an appeal against the decision to refuse funding (upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:

• (i)  make a formal, evidenced record of decisions to discharge and that this record is provided to the patient and/or family in a timely manner; and
• (ii)  ensure that when a decision to discharge is reached such a decision is made known to the patient and/or family at the time the decision is taken and that where objections are presented the process for appealing against such a decision is clearly and fully explained.

Further Action

This and other complaints to the Ombudsman indicate an urgent need to review the guidance on NHS Funded Continuing Care which was issued more than 11 years ago.  This is not a matter which an individual Health Board is able to address so cannot be resolved within this report.  The Ombudsman will instead draw this matter to the attention of the Scottish Executive Health Department.

The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly

Overview

The complainants, a firm of solicitors (the Solicitors) raised a concern on behalf of their client, Mrs C, that her late husband, Mr C, had not been properly assessed by Fife NHS Board (the Board) and consequently had ceased to receive funding for NHS Continuing Care (Continuing Care).  Mrs C was also concerned that during her appeal against the decision not to fund Mr C's care she had been subjected to undue pressure from the Board.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that the Board:

• (a)  failed to properly assess Mr C's ongoing eligibility for Continuing Care (partially upheld); and
• (b)  exerted undue pressure on Mrs C by supporting the local authority in making an application to the Sheriff Court to be appointed Mr C's welfare guardian (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman recommends that the Board:

• (i)  make a formal, evidenced record of decisions to discharge and that this record is provided to the patient and/or family in a timely manner;
• (ii)  ensure that when a decision to discharge is reached such a decision is made known to the patient and/or family at the time the decision is taken and that where objections are presented the process for appealing against such a decision is clearly and fully explained;
• (iii)  act on the recommendation of the Fife report  to produce written information on ongoing eligibility for patients assessed as eligible for NHS funded Continuing Care.  The Board should ensure that there is a single approach to such funding and that this is commonly understood by all relevant staff; and
• (iv)  make a written apology to Mrs C that the lack of clarity among staff about eligibility for Continuing Care led to miscommunication to Mrs C of Mr C's status and caused unnecessary distress.

Further Action

This and other complaints to the Ombudsman indicate an urgent need to review the guidance on NHS Funded Continuing Care which was issued more than 11 years ago.  This is not a matter which an individual Health Board is able to address so cannot be resolved within this report.  The Ombudsman will instead draw this matter to the attention of the Scottish Executive Health Department.

The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.

Overview

Mr C complained about the care and treatment he had received for back pain and an eye problem at a Hospital (the Hospital) in Lanarkshire NHS Board (the Board) area.  He said that treatment he had subsequently received in Turkey and Glasgow showed that this had been inadequate.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that:

• (a)       treatment received for back pain at the Hospital was inadequate (not upheld); and
• (b)       treatment received for an eye problem at the Hospital was inadequate (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman recommends that the Board review the Hospital's appointment systems to ensure that changes of address are correctly recorded on all relevant databases.

The Board have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.

Overview
The complainant (Mr C) raised a number of concerns that the successful operation of his farm has been undermined by the East Ayrshire Council (the Council)'s decision to grant planning consent for a housing development next door to his farm. Additionally, as a result of this development, Mr C has had problems modernising his farm to comply with modern pollution and animal welfare requirements.

Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:

• (a) the Building Control Department are unfairly insisting that new drainage be installed to deal with the roof water from the silage clamp roof (not upheld);
• (b) the Planning Department failed to ensure that a planning condition in respect of planting for screening purposes was enforced (not upheld);
• (c) the Planning Department failed to ensure that the condition for screen fencing and planting was transferred to the new application (not upheld);
• (d) as a result of the failings in (b) and (c) above, Mr C had unfairly to include the provision of screen fencing in his application to construct his silage clamps (not upheld);
• (e) Mr C was inappropriately advised to withdraw his application for a cubicle shed by Council officers when he should have been advised to amend the proposals (not upheld);
• (f) the Council are putting too much emphasis on the decision of the Reporter rather than considering every application on its merits (not upheld);
• (g) the Council should consider Mr C's application as permitted development as the Council did not exercise its right to comment on his proposals within the statutory time scale (not upheld); and
• (h) the Council is not working with Mr C to try and resolve these outstanding matters (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that the Council:

• (i) highlight to staff in the Planning Department the particular issues which can arise when Agricultural Prior Notification is received; and
• (ii) continue to work closely with Mr C in an attempt to find acceptable solutions to both the outstanding building control and planning problems.

The Council have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.

Overview

The complainant (Mr C) alleged that in December 2005 Falkirk Council (the Council) erroneously refused his application to buy his Council house and that they sent him bills for council tax although he was exempt.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that:

• (a)  in December 2005 the Council erroneously refused Mr C's application to buy his Council house (not upheld); and
• (b)  the Council sent Mr C bills for council tax although he is exempt (not upheld).

Redress and recommendations

The Ombudsman has no recommendations to make.

Overview

The complainant (Mr C) raised a number of concerns about the provisions made by South Lanarkshire Council (the Council) to assist his mother (Mrs A) in and out of her home.

Specific complaints and conclusions

The complaints which have been investigated are that the Council:

• (a)  should have carried out an assessment of the property and Mrs A's needs in advance of carrying out any work (not upheld);
• (b)  initially proposed the wrong kind of stair lift (not upheld);
• (c)  took too long to install the stair lift agreed upon and failed to keep Mr C and Mrs A updated on progress (not upheld);
• (d)  have still to complete all the required works (not upheld);
• (e)  failed to address the problem of car parking (not upheld); and
• (f)  have not apologised for the fact that officers took photographs outside the house without identifying themselves causing Mrs A some anxiety (not upheld).

Redress and recommendation

The Ombudsman has no recommendations to make.