Southend-on-Sea City Council has agreed to apologise to a mother for failing to assess her needs as a carer on two occasions.
The mother complained to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman after the council failed to carry out a parent carer’s assessment when looking at her son’s needs as a disabled child.
While the council agreed to the Ombudsman’s recommendation to carry out the assessment, a second investigation revealed that the local authority once again failed to take into account the needs of the mother who also has a disability.
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Ms Amerdeep Somal, said the investigation revealed that the council was ‘not fully aware’ of its duty to ensure both the needs of service users and their carers.
Cllr Laurie Burton, cabinet member for Children, Young People, and SEND at Southend-on-Sea City Council, said: ‘We have fully accepted the findings of the Ombudsman and will take the actions outlined in the report.’
She added: ‘We have apologised to the complainant for our errors and will work with them to ensure their needs are properly addressed.’
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