Category: community care

Council loses appeal over after-care services and personal injury damages – Local Government Lawyer

Posted November 3rd, 2017 in appeals, community care, local government, mental health, news by sally

‘Manchester City Council has lost an appeal over whether a person who has been compulsorily detained in a hospital for mental disorder under the Mental Health Act 1983 and has then been released from detention but still requires “after-care services” is entitled to require his local authority to provide such services at any time before he has exhausted the sums received in damages from his personal injury claim.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 3rd November 2017

Source: localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Case Law Update – Byrom Street Chambers

Posted October 20th, 2017 in community care, Court of Protection, damages, delay, disclosure, evidence, hospitals, medical records, negligence, news, periodical payments, personal injuries, video recordings by sally

‘This paper examines a selection of those of the more interesting cases to those acting for defendants over the past two years.’

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Byrom Street Chambers, 26th September 2017

Source: www.byromstreet.com

CQC improving but must tackle issues in regulation activities: watchdog – Local Government Lawyer

Posted October 20th, 2017 in auditors, community care, health, news, standards by sally

‘The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has improved as an organisation, but must overcome “some persistent issues with the timeliness of some of its regulation activities”, the National Audit Office (NAO) has found.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 19th October 2017

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

R (Davey) v Oxfordshire CC in the Court of Appeal – Community Care Blog

Posted September 8th, 2017 in community care, disabled persons, local government, news, statutory duty, statutory interpretation, treaties by sally

‘Last Friday the Court of Appeal delivered judgment in R (Davey) v Oxfordshire CC [2017] EWCA Civ 1308. This is the first time the Court of Appeal has examined the provisions of the Care Act 2014.’

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Community Care Blog, 7th September 2017

Source: communitycare11kbw.com

Ombudsman criticises council for errors in children’s complaints handling – Local Government Lawyer

Posted September 8th, 2017 in community care, complaints, learning difficulties, local government, news, reasons by sally

‘The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGO) has criticised a London borough after two brothers with learning difficulties saw their care and support packages reduced without their mother being told why.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 7th September 2017

Source: localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Council agrees £10k-plus payout after grandmother left without respite – Local Government Lawyer

Posted July 14th, 2017 in autism, community care, compensation, disabled persons, grandparents, local government, news, ombudsmen, special educational needs by sally

‘A London borough has agreed to pay out more than £10,000 after an investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman into how a grandmother was left without respite for two years.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 13th July 2017

Source: localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Soaring abuse of elderly amid warnings care system ‘disintegrating’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 30th, 2017 in assault, care homes, community care, elderly, news, social services, statistics by sally

‘Reports of abuse and neglect of the elderly have risen by one third, amid warnings from GPs that the care system is “rapidly disintegrating”. The number of cases referred to social services under safeguarding rules has soared, new figures show, with more than 5,600 referrals last year – an increase of 33 per cent in two years.’

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Daily Telegraph, 20th June 2017

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Disabled claimant given green light to challenge cuts to care package – Local Government Lawyer

Posted June 15th, 2016 in community care, disabled persons, local government, news by sally

‘A High Court judge has given a disabled man permission to bring a legal challenge against a county council after it decided to reduce his care package.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 14th June 2016

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Council to refund care payments to 63 people after Ombudsman report – Local Government Lawyer

Posted June 3rd, 2016 in community care, elderly, local government, news, ombudsmen, repayment by sally

‘Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council has agreed to refund more than 60 older people if they are found to have been overcharged for care, following an investigation by the Local Government Ombudsman.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 2nd June 2016

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Austerity and Public Law: Richard Clayton QC: Accountability, Judicial Scrutiny and Contracting Out – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted November 30th, 2015 in budgets, community care, contracting out, judicial review, local government, news, ombudsmen by sally

‘Austerity Britain is shrinking the public sector and accelerating the process of contracting out services. However, the legal protections contracting out gives to service users are piecemeal and inadequate, raising very real concerns about how findings of unlawfulness are to be addressed.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 30th November 2015

Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org

Judge quashes cut in community care provision for man with learning difficulties – Local Government Lawyer

Posted July 3rd, 2015 in community care, judicial review, learning difficulties, local government, news, reasons by sally

‘A High Court judge has quashed a council’s decision to reduce the community care provision for a 23-year-old man with learning and communication difficulties.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 2nd July 2015

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Watchdog praises Care Act implementation but warns of burden on councils – Local Government Lawyer

Posted June 12th, 2015 in budgets, community care, local government, news, reports, social services by sally

‘he Department of Health’s cost estimates and chosen funding mechanisms for implementing the first phase of the Care Act 2014 have put local authorities under increased financial risk given the uncertain level of demand for adult social care, the National Audit Office has said.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 11th June 2015

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Confusion reigns over new social care laws – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted April 27th, 2015 in community care, local government, news, social services, statutory duty by sally

‘A statute modernising adult social care law that came into force this month could expose local authorities to greater litigation risks.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 27th April 2015

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

The Care Act 2014: Overview – Thirty Nine Essex Street

Posted March 20th, 2015 in carers, community care, health, local government, news, social services by sally

‘The Care Act adopts and implements many of the recommendations of the Law Commission on Adult Social Care (published 11 May 2011). It is the largest single piece of community care legislation since the great Beveridge reforms of 1948, sweeping away and re-codifying more than 50 years worth of law and policy.’

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Thirty Nine Essex Street, February 2015

Source: www.39essex.com

Disabled adult wins High Court battle with council over charges for services – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 6th, 2015 in benefits, community care, disabled persons, fees, judicial review, local government, news by sally

‘A disabled adult has successfully challenged in the High Court aspects of a county council’s policy on charging for adult non-accommodation services.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th March 2015

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Nonagenarian unlawfully detained in care home for nearly two years – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted January 23rd, 2015 in community care, damages, deprivation of liberty safeguards, elderly, human rights, local government, mental health, news by sally

‘The Court of Protection has castigated the actions of a County Council in depriving an old person of his liberty and dignity in their overreaction to reports that he might be subjected to financial exploitation. This, said the judge, amounted to punishing the victim for the acts of the perpetrators.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 22nd January 2015

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Court of Appeal rejects challenge to closure of passenger transport unit – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 21st, 2015 in appeals, community care, disabled persons, local government, news, transport by sally

‘A city council has successfully defended in the Court of Appeal its decision to close its passenger transport unit (PTU) and make alternative arrangements for users.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 20th January 2015

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Drive to end Winterbourne View-style care going backwards, official report shows – Daily Telegraph

Posted November 26th, 2014 in abuse of position of trust, care homes, care workers, community care, disabled persons, hospitals, mental health, news, reports by sally

‘Report commissioned by NHS calls for closure of all Winterbourne View-style institutions for disabled patients but Chief Nursing Officer insists complexity of cases leading to slow progress.’

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Daily Telegraph, 26th November 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Have we lost sight of J.S. Mill’s concept of the right to liberty? Article 5 in the Court of Protection – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted November 24th, 2014 in community care, deprivation of liberty safeguards, human rights, mental health, news by sally

‘Mostyn J has pulled no punches in rejecting an application for a declaration that an incapacitated person, being looked after in her own home, has been deprived of her liberty contrary to Article 5. There is a very full account of the judgment on the Mental Capacity Law and Policy blog so I will keep this summary short.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 21st November 2014

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Regina (O by her litigation friend the Official Solicitor) v Secretary of State for the Home Department – WLR Daily

Posted July 23rd, 2014 in community care, deportation, detention, judicial review, law reports, mental health by michael

Regina (O by her litigation friend the Official Solicitor) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2014] EWCA Civ 990 ;  [2014] WLR (D)  327

‘When determining the lawfulness of the continued immigration detention of a person with mental illness the court’s role was to supervise the decisions made by the Home Secretary for their compliance with the law, applying the Wednesbury test of unreasonableness, and was not that of a primary decision-maker such that it had to make its own choice between medical experts.’

WLR Daily, 17th July 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk