Other : Caerphilly County Borough Council

Miss A complained that Caerphilly Council failed to properly consider her concerns, and that it ignored her requests to escalate her social services complaint to the second stage of the statutory complaints procedure.
The Ombudsman decided that the Council had failed to follow the statutory complaints procedure. He said that this caused unnecessary delays for Miss A. He decided to settle the complaint without an investigation.
The Ombudsman sought and gained the Council’s agreement to apologise to Miss A, pay her redress of £250 and open a stage two complaint investigation within twenty working days. He also sought and gained the Council’s agreement to remind staff of complainants’ rights within the statutory complaints procedure, and to ensure that complainants are notified of their rights accordingly.