Example
Mr C applied for a community care grant for a number of items. He had moved properties due to his deteriorating health conditions and needed a number of items to set up his new home.
The council originally assessed that he met the qualifying criteria under a family facing exceptional pressure and made an award for the items that they assessed met the necessary propriety level. In response to Mr C’s first tier review request they did not change their original decision with respect to the declined items.
Mr C applied to SPSO for an independent review. We took into account the specific facts of the case including that Mr C had a terminal diagnosis of Leukaemia, dementia, COPD and epilepsy. We also spoke to his sister who provided further detail about the extent to which his health conditions impact him on a day-to-day basis, including that he could be doubly incontinent during his fits, and required carers to come in on a daily basis to assist with personal care tasks. We noted that she was currently providing cooking, food storage and laundry assistance to Mr C and was occasionally required to stay over. We considered that a cooker, a fridge-freezer, a washing machine, an additional set of bedding and a bed for his carer all met the council's high priority rating and particularly noted that in line with s8.11 awards could be made to allow a carer to provide care to an applicant and assist them to stay in their home rather than going into care. We upheld the review on the basis of new information provided by Mr C’s sister.