Covid-19: Adult Social Care Complaints

Lord Loomba Excerpts

Monday 5th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bethell (Con)]

Last week, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman indicated that it had had around 100 Covid-related complaints. The department is closely monitoring the situation, including through our normal safeguarding networks. The ombudsman has confirmed that the current level of complaints is no higher than normal. We will be making sure that there is no backlog that ticks up this number.

[Lord Loomba (CB) [V]]

My Lords, with families now reluctant to send their loved ones into care and opting to look after them themselves, what measures are the Government taking to support the sector and ensure that existing residents are not traumatised by being forced to move home due to financial pressures forcing the closure of their current care homes?

[Lord Bethell (Con)]

No one should be under any pressure, financial or otherwise, to move unless they are absolutely determined to. I emphasise that anyone who has a complaint should complain either to the ombudsman or through the CQC and Healthwatch system. To encourage knowledge of and access to that complaints procedure, we have launched the “Because we all care” campaign, which is encouraging people to use the NHS and social care feedback systems in a way that captures the learnings from Covid during this difficult time.