The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman is cautioning councils against allowing the care homes they work with to have subsidiary contracts with clients following a complaint about Leeds City Council.

The warning comes after it became clear the council had allowed Indigo Care Services Ltd to have a second contract with a woman it had placed in the provider’s Paisley Lodge home.

The woman’s family complained to the Ombudsman about a number of issues. These included their mother looking unkempt during one visit, items of clothing and other possessions going missing, and only being allowed ‘window visits’ at certain times during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The family also said the payment and funding arrangements were confusing. The Ombudsman’s investigation found that, between June and November 2020, the care home had a second contract in place with the family to make up the difference between what it charged the council for the woman’s care, and its private rate. This was contrary to statutory guidance.

The Ombudsman upheld the family’s complaints about the care home’s delay in registering the mother with a GP, and about her standard of appearance and missing possessions. It did not uphold the complaint about visiting arrangements during the pandemic.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said:

“The woman’s family were given no choice but to sign the second contract with the home as a condition of acceptance of the care home placement, with the council’s full knowledge this was taking place. At the time, it was the council’s responsibility – not the family’s – to arrange their mother’s care, so they should not have been asked to do this.

“This has caused unnecessary distress and confusion for the family at what was already a difficult time.

“I am pleased the council and care provider have both agreed to my recommendations to improve their contracting arrangements so in future other families are not caused the same frustration.”

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman remedies injustice and shares learning from investigations to help improve public, and adult social care, services. In this case the council and care provider have agreed to apologise to the family.

The council and care home will each pay the family £300 in recognition of the distress and time and trouble caused.

The council and care home will pay £200 and £100 respectively to the mother’s estate for her lost clothing and possessions. The council will also refund the mother’s estate £173 per week for the time she entered the care home until 8 November 2020. The care home will refund £33 per week for the same period, offset against the outstanding invoice for charges.

The Ombudsman has the power to make recommendations to improve processes for the wider public. In this case the council has agreed to end the practice of allowing providers to enter into contracts with clients or their families to make additional charges for care that run alongside the council’s own contracts.

It will also review its financial assessments practice to avoid delays in the process.

The care home will review its contract’s standard terms and conditions around notice periods, and remove or revise any clause that refers to shortfalls between the rate paid by the local authority and its ‘full amount charges’

Article date: 01 September 2022

At the invitation of Maria Stylianou-Lottides, the Commissioner for Administration and the Protection of Human Rights of the Republic of Cyprus, the Slovenian Ombudsman Peter Svetina is currently on an official visit to Nicosia. His visit confirms the excellent relations between their two institutions, which, among other things, are the result of their close cooperation within theInternational Ombudsman Institute (IOI)) and the Association of Mediterranean Ombudsmen (AOM). Svetina met with the leadership of the Cypriot human rights ombudsman institution, with whom he discussed the role and work of the two institutions. Svetina and Stylianou-Lottides addressed various social issues, but especially the personal experience of more vulnerable groups in society who are often cast aside to the margins or to the bottom of society, whom they encounter in their work. They highlighted the importance of the work of all institutions in line with the international human rights standards and the rule of law, and the importance of their commitment to civilizational and democratic standards. Svetina also met the president of the Cypriot parliament, Annita Demetriou, with whom they confirmed their commitment to protecting human rights. They agreed that the dignity of others should be at the forefront of all our activities, stressing that ethics in public speaking should again be the aim of all, because sadly it is becoming increasingly less important, especially on social media.

 "A society can only be sound if its immune system is working properly – that is, the civil society, independent supervisory institutions, the free and independent media, an autonomous academic community and other active members of society," noted Svetina at the meeting with President Demetriou in Nicosia. "As a society, we have set certain rules to ourselves, many of which have their legal foundation in the legislation, laws and other documents to ensure their lawfulness and fairness. In a society where the rules are clear and so are the consequences of violating them, there is an atmosphere of certainty, which leads to a feeling of security, which, however, has been severely shaken by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, migrations and other crises. In these new circumstances, social rules are put to the test and therefore it is especially important to respect the decisions of the authorities that determine which rules should apply in society so that everyone's dignity is respected, and everyone's rights and fundamental freedoms can be exercised," added Svetina.  

He also drew attention to the fact that human rights require constant attention because any violation of an individual's rights leaves a mark on and affects their life. He and his Cypriot colleague, Ombudsman Maria Stylianou-Lottides, agreed that every person that turns to a national institution for the protection of human rights finds themselves in an extremely difficult situation (either psychologically, emotionally or socially) in which their security is compromised, so they called for a strengthening of the role of these institutions and the status of ombudsmen at the national and international levels. In addition, they emphasised the importance of the financial independence of national human rights institutions and their operation based on the Paris Principles, because they can only perform their tasks effectively if they are independent of the institutions that supervise them. Svetina also supported Cyprus's efforts to acquire "A" status accreditation according to the Paris Principles, which regulate the status and functioning of national human rights institutions. This is the highest attainable status according to the Principles, which were adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1993. Svetina shared his experience with the demanding accreditation procedure with his Cypriot colleagues (the Slovenian Human Rights Ombudsman institution acquired this status in early 2021), expressing his believes that the Cypriot Ombudsman is successful on this journey. "For Cyprus, this will be not only a recognition of its successful work related to the protection of human rights, but also a signal to the country itself that respecting and strengthening the role of such an institution is the right way forward, " concluded the Slovenian Ombudsman, Peter Svetina.
 

Am 03. September 2022 findet im Thüringer Landtag, Jürgen-Fuchs-Straße 1, in der Zeit zwischen 10.00 und 17.00 Uhr der Tag der offenen Tür statt. Inhaltlicher Schwerpunkt in diesem Jahr ist das Thema Inklusion.

Im Vorfeld dazu erklärt der Bürgerbeauftragte, Dr. Kurt Herzberg: „Ich bin froh, dass beim Tag der offenen Tür die Bürgerinnen und Bürger mit mir und meinen Mitarbeiterinnen ins direkte Gespräch kommen können. Wir haben einiges an Information, aber auch Unterhaltendes – vor allem für die Kinder – vorbereitet.“

Am Informationsstand im Erdgeschoss können sich die Besucher ganztägig einen Einblick in die Arbeit des Bürgerbeauftragten verschaffen, mit dem Bürgerbeauftragten ins Gespräch kommen oder auch Anliegen vortragen. Daneben können sich Bürgerinnen und Bürger an einer Umfrage zu ihren Erfahrungen mit Behörden beteiligten.

Um ca. 11:30 Uhr wird Dr. Herzberg auf der Bühne im Innenhof Auskunft zu seiner Tätigkeit als Thüringer Bürgerbeauftragter geben und Fragen des Moderators beantworten.

Um 12:00 Uhr findet eine Veranstaltung des Bürgerbeauftragten unter dem Titel „Barriere Behörde“ statt. Hier werden die Ergebnisse einer Umfrage des Vereins Miteinander e.V. (Neuhaus a.R.) unter Betroffenen zu Barrieren im öffentlichen Raum und im Umgang mit Behörden vorgestellt und u.a. mit Jenas Oberbürgermeister, Dr. Thomas Nitzsche, diskutiert.

Um 14:00 Uhr stellt der Bürgerbeauftragte seine eigenen Bemühungen um barrierefreien Zugang und Information vor. Unter anderem werden drei animierte Erklärvideos vorgestellt, die auf der Homepage des Bürgerbeauftragten in leicht verständlicher Weise einen Einblick in die Arbeitsweise geben und einzelne Themenschwerpunkte erläutern.

The conference, convened at the initiative of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, brought together representatives of Member States, NGOs and experts. Following the forum, participants will formulate recommendations for the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council.