Agenda item

Purpose: To request the Adult Social Care Complaints Annual Report be reviewed and approval given for publication.

Paul Coe (Executive Director – Adult Social Care) presented the Adult Social Care Complaints Annual Report (Agenda Item 7).

The following points were raised in the debate:

·       Details of a recent whistleblowing incident did not feature in the report. Some aspects had to be referred to a neighbouring local authority (Reading Borough Council). Other aspects were reviewed by the Council’s Internal Audit Manager, but these did not feature in the report, as this was part of a different process. However, she had found no basis for concern about the relationship between the Council and the provider. Investigations into wider issues related to the provider’s workforce were not contained in the Annual Report, because the provider’s headquarters were not in the District. 

·       Controls around Care Quality included the Care Quality Commission and the Council’s own Care Quality Team. Reviewing Officers also picked up quality issues. In addition, intelligence about providers was shared between local authorities. It was recognised that there were workforce challenges, but in general, controls provided assurance that standards were being met.

·       It was noted that the West Locality was the biggest of the three community teams and served the largest population. Although it had a larger number of complaints than the other two areas, it was considered to be proportionate.

·       It was noted that the Council had a dedicated Children’s and Adults’ Social Care trainer who used the annual report to help inform the annual training programme.

·       Key areas for the Council were ensuring that vulnerable adults were not subject to financial abuse and ensuring that service users were charged an appropriate amount for care in line with government guidance. The recent cost of living crisis meant that financial abuse was more likely, and people would also be more likely to baulk at paying for care.

·       It was explained that the Council accepted complaints verbally and in writing. Processes were in place to capture the service user’s concerns. All complaints were an opportunity to learn. If they were addressed quickly then they may not escalate to a formal complaint.

Action: Paul Coe to provide Councillor Billy Drummond with details of the number of formal complaints received verbally and in writing.

·       Members noted that compliments outnumbered complaints and also West Berkshire Council had fewer complaints than other comparable local authorities.

·       It was noted that the report would be published on the Council’s website. The website prioritised high traffic pages, so users may need to use the search facility to find it.

·       Members asked for web links to be included on page 3 and to include a glossary to explain the acronyms used in the report.

·       It was suggested that future reports should include more detail on the nature of the complaints.

Actions:

o   Officers to add web links to page three of the report.

o   Include a glossary to explain acronyms used in the report.

o   Future reports to include more detail about the nature of complaints.

RESOLVED to note the Adult Social Care Complaints Annual Report 2023/24 and to approve publication.