Social services and community care
Community care, provided by local council social services, provides support to people with disabilities and other special needs so they are able to lead as independent a life as possible. Community care is available to all sorts of people, for example people with disabilities, older people and people with other special needs.
However, there are times when the provision of this service does not run as smoothly as it should. Leigh Day lawyers have been instructed by many individuals who have found themselves in dispute with their local councils about both the level of community care offered, the quality of service offered or the failure to the provide the service at all.
Previous cases
KM: K is a young woman with Retts Syndrome. As a result she has high level, complex needs and is dependent on others for all aspects of her daily life. She lives with her mother and two siblings.
Following an assessment of her needs by her local council and primary care trust (PCT), it was agreed that the two bodies should provide K with a care plan, which consisted of several hours care and assistance a day along with regular respite hours for her family.
Despite agreeing to this package, the PCT often failed to provide the hours to which they had agreed. Her mother, as litigation friend to K, issued proceedings challenging this ongoing failure. The court found in her favour, ordering the PCT to provide her with the plan agreed, which has remained in place since.
FS: Ms S has limited mobility. She has arthritis in her spine and neck and lives in constant pain. She uses a crutch to walk and even then can only manage about 20 yards before having to stop and recover. She has very poor grip and severely limited movement of her left arm.
Parking around her home was often difficult meaning that if she needed to unload shopping she had no option but to double park, which often caused problems and resulted in her receiving verbal abuse.
She applied to the council for a disabled parking bay to be put outside her home. Her application was refused. She instructed Leigh Day to challenge this refusal. Our lawyers challenge was successful and the council confirmed it would reconsider her application. Upon doing so, it agreed that Ms S should be provided with a disabled parking bay as soon as reasonably practicable.
News
Report shows that many care homes make mistakes when issuing drugs to residents
The LSC has terminated its contract with Coleg Elidyr leaving vulnerable students stranded
Leigh Day lawyers prevent closure of respite home
Many vulnerable children in the care system experience unacceptable standards of care
A huge database of information on the nation’s children is being launched by the Government
Lawyers in the human rights and discrimination law teams at Leigh Day & Co have been working on behalf of disabled and older people in Hammersmith & Fulham whose care payments were frozen by the local council.
The case of Roger Ramm, who died while being detained under the Mental Health Act, has settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. His mother was represented by the Human Rights department of Leigh Day & Co.
Lorraine WolstenholmeA settlement has been reached to provide carers to lift a Milton Keynes woman who has been forced to sleep in her wheelchair for the last year and a half. Her solicitor was Leigh Day's Human Rights solicitor Richard Stein.