Adults attempting to challenge social care decisions made by councils are ‘being failed’, the national equalities watchdog has said.

Local authority processes are confusing and slow, with risks that people do not get the care they need, according to an inquiry conducted by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

The EHRC launched its inquiry in July 2021 to understand the experiences of social care users and carers who have challenged decisions made by local authorities in England and Wales.

According to the regulator’s findings, social care users, and their families, find making complaints ‘difficult and stressful’ and some are deterred from seeking help by what the EHRC calls ‘a complicated system’.

Marcial Boo, chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: ‘When social care works well it makes an enormous difference, helping people live their lives as they choose. But the social care system in England and Wales is struggling, with people’s needs being balanced against tight budgets.

‘While local authorities are facing huge pressures, they must protect people’s rights when making decisions about their care. Effective ways for people to challenge those decisions are crucial to ensuring that good decisions are made and people’s needs are met.’

The inquiry heard that some people are not given crucial information about how to challenge decisions, and under half of the local authorities surveyed always signpost users to independent advice or support.

The EHRC also found that there is also poor collection and analysis of equality data, which undermines the ability of councils to understand how well they meet the social care needs of different groups.

The equalities watchdog called on the Government to make the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) the statutory complaints standards authority for adult social care in England, and for the LGSCO to receive new powers to initiate investigations into areas of concern without the need for individual complaints.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: ‘We welcome the EHRC’s latest report which echoes the issues we regularly find in our investigations about adult care services, of which we uphold more than two thirds.

‘People have a right to good quality care that respects their basic rights to dignity, autonomy and fair treatment. If things go wrong, there should be transparent, effective and accessible procedures in place for people to challenge decisions made by their local councils.

‘But we know this is not always the case, which is why we have been calling for statutory signposting to our service. As the newly-empowered statutory complaints standards authority, we would ensure complaints were dealt with clearly and consistently across the country, and that lessons from complaints were properly scrutinised and embedded.’