News round up: New complaints system for care home residents

New care home complaints system to offer elderly residents better service

Sweeping changes are to be made to the regulation of Britain’s 13,900 care homes, including a new complaints system and tougher inspections for large private operators, The Times has learnt.

Elderly people and their families, who pay for care, will soon be able to take grievances to the Local Government Ombudsman, whose office currently investigates complaints against local authorities over school admissions, housing and social services.

So-called self-funders, who make up almost half of the 440,000 care home residents in Britain, have been clamouring for a new complaints system to be set up after ministers made clear that the current regulator, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), could not take on this role.

Read more on this story in The Times

Town hall millions may be lost in Iceland

Dozens of local councils risk losing hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money held in Iceland’s stricken banks.

Read more on this story in The Times

Britain down expats’ wish-list for children

Britain is one of the worst places for expatriates to bring up their children, according to a survey of parents by HSBC published on Wednesday.

Read more on this story in The Financial Times

Balls is let off but expenses cut urged for MPs who share second homes

Cabinet couple Ed Balls and Yvette Cooper were cleared of exploiting Commons expenses on Wednesday  –  but not before Westminster’s sleaze watchdog ordered a clean up of the system.

Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon said it was wrong that two MPs who live together were allowed to claim the same lavish expenses as if they were living alone.

His call came in a report into Mr Balls, the Schools Secretary, and Miss Cooper, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, who had been accused over their use of Additional
Costs Allowances.

Read more on this story in The Daily Mail

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