Agenda item

The Panel had requested an update on performance of Stage 2 Children’s Social Care complaints completed inside 65 days and Stage 2 Corporate complaints in 25 days, following the 11 March 2021 Panel meeting.

The Strategic Director of Commercial and Change introduced the report by stating that the County Council took complaints very seriously as it provided a picture of what residents were experiencing.  Regular updates were provided to Senior Leaders, and Directorate Officers across the organisation were involved in the process.  The Director referred to the Agenda, outlining that the requested Action Plan had been developed following the 11 March Panel and that some progress had been made.

The Council acknowledged that the 2020 Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGO) letter was disappointing and was expecting progress to have been made when the 2021 letter was received by the end of July.  The Director concluded that although there had been some decrease in the volume of complaints, it was a strange time to be taking feedback from residents. 

The Cabinet Member with Responsibility (CMR) for Corporate Services and Communication added that as the previous Panel Chairman, he remembered the Panel’s discussions and agreed actions.  He referred to the Appendix showing the Action Plan and highlighted that it showed some improvement had been made, although advised caution as it was very easy for figures to be skewed if numbers were low.  The CMR suggested that the Panel may wish to keep the subject under review.

The Panel was asked to note an error in the Agenda.  Paragraph 7 (bullet point 3) should read that there had been “an increase in most of the categories for Statutory Adult Social Care representations (complaints up from 117 to 125)…”

The Chairman invited questions from Panel Members and the following main points were made:

·         In response to a query on progress made in recruiting an additional 12 Investigators/Independent Persons, the Complaints Manager reported that employee references were currently being sought, with training and induction sessions being planned for August.  New Independent Persons would work alongside an experienced Investigator initially, to build up their knowledge.  The Panel was also reminded that for all Children’s Social Care cases, an Independent Person must shadow the Investigator

·         For clarity, the 12 appointees included 3 Independent Persons and 8 Investigators

·         When asked about the progress of Conflict Resolution Meetings, it was reported that a process had been agreed with the People Directorate, however, a trial case had not yet been identified as the process did not suit every case.  In addition, as the process was staff intensive, it was important to choose carefully

·         In response to a question on what the Council could do to reduce the number of complaints overall, it was reported that Worcestershire Children First (WCF) had a higher rate of satisfaction at Stage 1 suggesting that work to resolve issues early was key

·         The Panel was reminded that Adult Social Care representations had a one Stage process.  If the complainant was not satisfied, they had the right to go straight to the LGO.  Corporate complaints had a 2 Stage process, whereas Children’s Social Care representations had 3 Stages, plus the opportunity for an Independent Review Panel

·         Members learned that the Council’s Senior Leadership Team received a quarterly monitoring report, including lessons learned, however, review and learning was ongoing across the organisation

·         Individual Directorates were responsible for dealing with Stage 1 complaints, with the Consumer Relations Unit taking on the management of Stage 2 complaints

·         A contract was issued for each investigation, at a flat hourly rate, with the Investigator required to provide an update every 2 weeks.  No further expenses were paid and the hourly rate was reviewed every two years to keep in line with neighbouring authorities

·         The Complaints Manager gave an outline of the investigation process highlighting that the Action Plan required Investigators to have direct access to Liquid Logic to enable secure file reads at County Hall and this was now in place.  Furthermore, a meeting room was available to the Investigators, although remote meetings were likely to become the default option going forward.  Once the investigation was complete, the Investigator would write their report within 5 days, which was checked for factual accuracy and forwarded to the Directorate for their response

·         The introduction of a Complaints Tracker spreadsheet, which could be viewed by appropriate Staff across the organisation, had helped to keep work under review and showed clear timeframes and responsibility

·         The Cabinet Member was pleased that the use of technology, especially with remote meetings, was assisting with the improvement plan and would like to see more bespoke technology in place for tracking complaints

·         In relation to complaints completed within timescales, examples were given whereby delays were outside of the Council’s control.  The onus had also moved to the complainant, whereby if there was no response within 5 days, it was assumed they were satisfied with the outcome.  Very rarely, investigations could be suspended such as if there was a substantial amendment

·         When asked why only 40% of Stage 2 Children’s complaints had been completed within the 65 working days set by legislation, the Cabinet Member suggested that the national timeframe was unrealistic.  Every case was different; however, the lack of Investigators and Independent Persons did not help.  It was hoped that with an increased pool of qualified people, capacity would increase and the wait time to allocate a case would drop from the current 6 to 8 weeks.  At present, Investigators would manage a maximum of 4 cases at any one time.  The Chairman requested further information on caseload management

·         The Panel noted that although 40% were in the timescale, all had ultimately been resolved

·         Benchmarking Worcestershire performance against West Midlands authorities was done informally, however, it was known that reporting methods were not consistent, therefore there was no true picture

·         Early analysis of 2020/21 in comparison to 2019/20 suggested a slight rise in the number of complaints, however, Officers were keeping pace with the increase.  Given that Annual Reports would be finalised by the Autumn, the Panel agreed to have a further update at their November Panel meeting

·         A Member questioned whether a pool of 12 would be enough to improve performance and whether the Council should be striving to be the best.  In response the Director highlighted that it was difficult to know whether the number recruited was enough, however, improved processes should streamline some of the tasks, such as a move to remote meetings.  Furthermore, the Council would want to be on par with its near neighbours, however, when information wasn’t shared it was difficult to benchmark.  The Cabinet Member added that he was delighted that the pool had increased, however it was important to look at impact at an appropriate time in the future

·         For clarity, the process for Children’s complaints was explained.  After Stage 1, the complainant had the absolute right to go to Stage 2 which was a full investigation by an Investigator and Independent Person.  After these 2 reports and a Directorate response, there was still the right to go to Stage 3 (an Independent Review Panel) and ultimately there was still the right to go to the LGO.  The LGO would investigate and could recommend action even if the Council had upheld the original complaint

·         Further information was requested on these Ombudsman cases in future Annual Reports and the number and amount of financial settlements awarded.

The Chairman thanked everyone for an informative and useful discussion.

The Panel agreed that:

·         Information about the caseload of each Investigator would be included in each future report, to see trends over time

·         Information about financial settlements made to date would be provided now and included in future reports (if suitable for reporting in the public domain)

·         When this year’s LGO letter was received, the Panel would be provided with a summary (including a breakdown of the complex cases)

·         A further report would be provided for the 8 November 2021 Panel Meeting.