By Charlotte Webster-
The Ombudsman has revealed that council adult social care failings on assessment, care planning and safeguarding all rose last year.
The Local Ombudsman watchdog revealed that the number of assessment and care planning complaints upheld by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman rose by 13%, from 215 to 243, between 2018-19 and 2019-20- a rise of 11% from the previous year.
The watchdog revealed that upheld complaints relating to safeguarding also rose last year, from 47 in 2018-19 to 52 in 2019-20, but this is below the 70 upheld in 2017-18.
Over the period the Ombudsman received 3,073 complaints and enquiries. Of those complaints, only 430 were from people who arranged their care privately with independent providers. The Ombudsman said that the disproportionately low number of complaints about independent providers means the independent sector is missing out on an untapped seam of valuable learning and potential improvements to their services.
Failings in adult social care expose those who are tasks with delivering the duty of caring for vulnerable adults within their jurisdiction. Failings relating to child care have also been reported in the past, but were not included in the annual report released by the watchdog.
British councils are funded heavily by the government, and are expected to fulfil their duty with with diligence and expertise. The revelation demands greater expertise and focus, to prevent a recurrence of this failings.