Example
C had applied for a crisis grant for money for food and utilities after their money was stolen when they had a seizure. The council refused the application, because C had already received three awards in the last 12-month period (the usual maximum allowed). They did not identify any exceptional circumstances that would allow for an additional award to be made, stating that C had received previous awards after losing their money.
C asked us to review the council’s decision.
We looked at the council's file and spoke with C. We did not agree with the council’s decision because C’s was an exceptional circumstance. Money stolen is different from money lost which meant the council had used incorrect information in their decision making. We changed their decision and gave learning and improvement feedback on their decision letters.