People receiving social care in England and Wales are being failed when they try to challenge decisions by local authorities, a new report has found.

The report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) says social care users and their loved ones find making complaints difficult and stressful, often at a time when they are in crisis, with local authority processes being both confusing and slow.

Marcial Boo, chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: “When social care works well it makes an enormous difference, helping people live their lives as they choose. But the social care system in England and Wales is struggling, with people’s needs being balanced against tight budgets.  

“While local authorities are facing huge pressures, they must protect people’s rights when making decisions about their care. Effective ways for people to challenge those decisions are crucial to ensuring that good decisions are made and people’s needs are met.” 

The inquiry heard some people are not given crucial information about how to challenge decisions, and under half of the local authorities surveyed always signpost users to independent advice or support.

The report also found there was poor collection and analysis of equality data.

The report calls for the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) to be made the statutory complaints standards authority for adult social care in England and for the LGSCO to receive new powers to initiate investigations into areas of concern without the need for individual complaints.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: “The EHRC has made a number of pragmatic recommendations which support the powers we have been calling on the government to give us, including the ability for us to carry out investigations where we think there is unremedied injustice regardless of whether we have received a complaint.”

Gillian Baranski, chief inspector at Care Inspectorate Wales, said: “Ensuring people are at the heart of decision-making and their voices are heard is one of the core principles guiding the CIW’s work. 

“I welcome this inquiry and look forward to continuing to work closely with the EHRC to ensure its recommendations are taken forward.” 

Sarah McClinton, president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services said: “We welcome this report from the EHRC and their recognition of the difference that social care makes to many people’s lives. That’s why a clear and transparent complaints system is so important to enable equitable access to the support people need. The report highlights many local authorities doing good work in providing accessible information on how to complain and access to advocates, but it also shows there are serious gaps. The learning from this inquiry will be crucial in helping councils understand how the complaints systems can be improved.

“But we also need to tackle the underlying problem of long-term sustainable funding for high quality adult social care so that everyone can get the care and support they need to live a good life. This report is another wake-up call that reform cannot wait another three, five or ten years. We need to work across political boundaries now to solve the adult care crisis.”

Cllr David Fothergill, chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said: “Councils fully support being transparent and accessible and the learning from this inquiry will be crucial in understanding how the complaints systems can be improved.

“Councils and care providers continue to work tirelessly to keep vital care and support services going. However, significant and worsening financial and workforce challenges will at times inevitably impact on people’s experience of care and support. Addressing this requires long-term and sustainable funding for adult social care services.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “People should be able to access outstanding quality care and anyone who has seen or experienced poor quality care has the right to complain to the organisation that provided or paid for it.

“A strong feedback culture in adult social care is important to improve services and people’s experiences. We will look at the findings and recommendations of the report and respond in due course.”