The Sottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) independently reviews council decisions about Scottish Welfare Fund applications under the Welfare Funds (Scotland) Act 2015.
Criteria for reviews
We are the final stage in the decision making process. We can normally only review applications after:
- an application has been made to the council
- the council has made a decision, and
- the council has completed a first tier review and made a decision.
Time limit
Applicants should ask us for a review within one month of receiving the council’s first tier review decision. In some situations, we can accept late reviews and you should contact us to discuss the circumstances if this is the case.
Consent
If you are helping someone to submit a review, then we will need consent from the applicant to discuss and share information with you. This can be done verbally, by email from the applicant’s own email address, or you can send us your signed consent form.
Grounds for an independent review
We will ask the applicant why they are unhappy with the council’s decision although we can still take forward a review without knowing this.
We are also able to consider complaints about how an applicant was treated by the council.
Find out more about the Scottish Welfare Fund by visiting www.gov.scot/Topics/People/fairerscotland/scottishwelfarefund
How we will make our decision
We willl decide whether the council made the decision that should have been made.
We will look at whether the council:
- followed Scottish Government guidance, regulations and any relevant council policies
- considered information that was accurate, relevant and complete
- made appropriate enquiries to get that information
- made its decision fairly, based on relevant information and the applicant’s individual circumstances, and
- treated the applicant with dignity and respect when making its decision.
Getting information to help us make our decision
Once we have checked that the application has been through the council’s application and first tier review process, we will ask the council to send us their case file. We will ask them to send us everything so we can see what information they had when they made their decision.
We will then contact the applicant or their representative to let them know that we have the case file. We will give them a chance to give us any further information they want to provide. We may also have some questions for them, but we will only ask for information we need to make our decision.
In some cases, we may need the applicant to send us some extra information. We may also need to check something with a third party e.g. their housing officer or support worker. We usually discuss this with the applicant first. If the applicant tells us not to contact the third party, we will make our decision based on the information we have.
We can also carry out home visits or hold an oral hearing, which would be with the applicant and the council. We would only do this if we needed more information and it would be the fair thing to do. Based on our experience we very rarely need to do either of these as we are able to get the information we need in other ways e.g. in writing or by speaking to the applicant. If you have any questions about this process, please contact us.
What can we decide?
We can decide:
- to change part or all of the council’s decision
- to tell the council to make a new decision, or
- not to change the council’s decision in any way. We may also make suggestions to the council about how it can learn and improve.
Grant awards
We will not reduce or take away any award because you asked us for a review, even if we disagree with the council’s decision.
Only the corrected decision will be reported or included in the statistics about the local authority’s performance.
If we decide that the council should make an award, the council will contact the applicant directly to arrange this.
How long will the process take?
We normally ask the council for the case documents on the same day the review is requested. If the request comes in after 3pm, we ask for the documents the next working day.
The council should send documents to us within:
- one working day for crisis grant reviews
- four working days for community care grant reviews
Once we have all the information we need, we aim to make our decision:
- within one working day for crisis grants
- within 21 working days for community care grants
If we cannot meet these timescales, we will explain why.
Quick guide to common situations
The applicant was told they were too late to ask the council for a first tier review
We may be able to help, depending on the circumstances. You should speak to our SWF team.
The applicant has new information they think the council should have looked at when making its decision
If the information relates to circumstances the council should have been aware of at the time, we may take it into account. However, if the information is entirely new, a new application to the council for a grant may be needed. If you are not sure you can call us for advice.
The applicant has been told the fund has run out of money – what can the SPSO do?
The SWF has a limited budget. We cannot make an award if the applicant first applied when the fund had no money left. We must base our decision on the level of funding available at the time they applied to the council.
If the applicant applied when money was available, but the fund is empty by the time they ask us for a review, we can still make an award if that is the decision they should have received at the time of their original application.
The applicant is unhappy about part of the council’s decision but worries that the SPSO could take away part of the council’s award
We will not reduce or take away an award the council has given. This is in line with general SWF principles.
Will the applicant need to speak to the SPSO’s team in person?
We usually make our decision using information from the applicant and the council. Applicants can speak to us by phone, or contact us in writing or online. If we need to check anything, we normally do this by phone or in writing.
We can ask to meet with the applicant if it is necessary. Our legislation also allows us to hold an oral hearing with the applicant, their representative, and the council.
These meetings are rare. We can almost always get the information we need without meeting in person.
If you want to know more about this, you can ask us.
Making independent reviews public
We may publish information about our reviews. This is to show people what we have found and what we have asked councils to do. We will remove information that could identify anyone.
The applicant thinks the decision is OK but feels they were treated badly by the council
If an applicant is unhappy with the service the council gave them, they should normally complain to the council using its complaints procedure. An applicant can complain even if they do not want to review the council’s decision. This may be, for example, because they are unhappy with how the council treated them or with a delay. Once an applicant has received the council’s response to their complaint, they can then complain to the SPSO.
What if the applicant is still unhappy after the SPSO’s independent review?
If they are unhappy with our decision, they can ask us to reconsider it. We will ask them to tell us why they disagree with the decision. We will not reconsider our decision simply because they are disappointed with it. We publish a leaflet about reconsidering our decisions. It is on our website or you can ask us for a copy.
The information above is available in a leaflet that you can download here:
Our SWF team are here to help. If you need information in another format, or you have any questions, please phone 0800 014 7299 or contact us online.
Our policies and procedures
We also have the following documents available (from the Related Documents section on this page):