Father receives £200 after county council takes too long to review son’s care
West Sussex County Council has paid £200 to a father after taking too long to review what care and support his adult son should receive.
The father – referred to as Mr X – complained to the council in July 2025, three months after the annual review of his son’s need should have been concluded.
He also raised concerns about the increased cost of transport and day provision for his son, and the council’s failure to respond to his request for extra respite care.
A complaint to the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman was made in November 2025 and resulted in a report which found the council to be at fault for the delay in completing the review.
The report said of the delay: “This caused the family distress as they did not know what provisions the new care plan might contain and the financial implications of this, issues they were already concerned about.”
The Ombudsman said the council should apologise to Mr X, pay £200 for the distress caused, and offer to complete the annual review within four weeks.
A council spokesman said: “We accept the Ombudsman’s findings regarding delays in reviewing care and support arrangements.
“We have apologised to the complainant and provided a financial remedy in recognition of the distress caused. We have also offered a further review of the individual’s care and support plan to ensure their needs and the family’s concerns are appropriately considered.”