Social services ignoring LPA

[Christina_22041]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask for advice, but I think people here might have some knowledge of this issue.

My mum is in a nursing home; I cared for her and my dad at home for a while during 2020, before and after his death. She ran out of funds to pay her bill a while ago, until her property sells, and I've been dealing with social services for 4/5 months. It's been like stepping into the Twilight Zone! This has culminated in a social worker visiting my mum, for whom my brother and I have Lasting Power of Attorney for finance and health/welfare. We are sure mum has dementia, and in her recent care assessment by a social worker, this was mentioned and not challenged. He also made several comments that to anyone who knows anything about dementia make clear she is at least in the early stages. I emailed the social worker and said it wasn't on to visit my mum like this as he had upset her. The response was to send another social worker to see her yesterday. I've since received an email from the social worker telling me why she went to see my mum. My mum meanwhile really has no idea why but is confused and upset again. I'm angry.... Can social services just ignore our LPA like this?

Also, does anyone know if there are timescales LAs have to meet re the Deferred Payment Scheme? It took them 8 weeks to send me an application form and 15 weeks to do a care assessment of my mum, leaving us in a far worse pickle than we would have been if they'd acted sooner. I know there are budget cuts and there's Covid, but this is extreme. Looks like my original application just wasn't passed on to the right dept. And of course, no-one acknowledges fault or takes responsibility!

Thanks!

[Charles_2112]

Hi Christina

First off you need to make sure they see the LPAs. Secondly, while it's possible to activate the finance and property LPA while Mum still has capacity, the same doesn't hold true for the Health and Wellbeing one, and the decision has to be made that your Mum no longer has capacity for this area of her life. The law on this is clear - you have to assume that someone has capacity unless or until there are questions raised about it. Social workers like the easy life and will continue to assume capacity, but the fact that your Mum gets confused and upset about the meetings means that it's possible her capacity is limited. Certainly your Mum has the right to tell the social worker she wants you present at every meeting.

You could point out that as you hold the Health and Wellbeing LPA it's a good idea for you to be involved so that you know what is happening for when it's activated, and don't get stuck trying to catch up later on.

[Kristie_2104]

Dear Christina_22041
Hi. I am Kristie a volunteer online community host for Carers UK. I hope that you will find the answers from the information i give you, the fellow carers give you and also from the information you can find on the forum.
So, welcome to the forum! You are not alone in your caring role, i am sure that many on here will understand exactly how you feel and will offer you the support that you need. Caring can be very lonely and the pandemic has made caring responsibilities challenging as many carers have been socially restricted and unable to attend social groups etc.
Carers UK are running two online weekly meet ups for carers and you can find the information on how to register at Care For A Cuppa:-https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advic ... ne-meetups. The second online weekly meet up is called Share And Learn:-https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advic ... e-sessions.
Our telephone number at Carers UK is 0808 808 7777 and the line is open Monday to Friday between the hours of 9am-6pm. Our email address at Carers UK is (advice@carersuk.org).
They provide information and guidance to unpaid carers. This covers:-
-Benefits And Financial Support
-Your Rights As A Carer In The Workplace
-Carers Assessments And How To Get Support In Your Caring Role
-Services Available To Carers And The People You Care For
-How To Complain Effectively And Challenge Decisions
Best Wishes
Kristie