Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about family and friends’ allowances to her for caring for two children. It is unlikely we would find fault.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms X, says the Council has not paid her the correct family and friends carers allowance for two children she cares for.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Ms X has cared for two children since 2010 on a Residence Order. The Council has paid her the equivalent of a fostering allowance to do so. She says that it has wrongly deducted benefits such as child benefit and it did not change the allowance for the elder child once they became 16.
6. We previously considered and decided a complaint from Ms X in 2018 about the deductions from her allowances. We cannot look at this again.
7. The Council confirmed in its reply to Ms X that it has reassessed the allowance for the elder child, changed the allowance and made a back payment.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because it is unlikely we would find fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman