Investigation Launches After Elderly Nottingham Woman Found Living In Filth

21 March 2016, 14:59 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

The 93 year-old was found by a Nottingham woman on the street who took her home and discovered the conditions she was living in

Council care bosses in Nottingham say they're investigating after a woman says she found an elderly woman receiving care but living in filthy conditions.

Ursula Norris from Wollaton found the woman upset in the street and took her home to find her home full of maggots and rotting food.

She says there needs to be a review of care practices.

Capital has spoken to Nottingham City Council about the conditions the woman, who receives care, was found to be living in.

Helen Jones, Director of Adult Social Care at Nottingham City Council, said:

"We were shocked to hear of the conditions that this lady had been living in recently, and acted immediately once we were informed by the police. This lady's care is provided by an independent homecare agency and we rely on them to advise us of any concerns they might have, so that we can act on them straight away. They are contractually-obliged to do this.

"We have been out to visit her and increased her current care levels - we will continue to work with her to ensure her wellbeing into the future.

"We had not been notified of these issues, and will now be investigating with the agency why that wasn't the case and seeking assurances for the care offered to other people supported by this service.

"We are grateful to the public for their vigilance around elderly neighbours and anyone with any concerns can call us on 0300 300 3333."

We spoke to the private care provider Sevacare, who gave us this response:

"Sevacare has been providing domiciliary care services in Nottingham City for 5 years and have always worked closely with the Council. We are aware of the recent report relating to a service user we have been providing support to. We are currently working with the Local Authority and are in the process of carrying out a full investigation to ensure that we quickly establish the full facts surrounding this case.
While we do not normally discuss an individual case, we can confirm that our initial investigation has revealed that the Service User has full capacity to make her own decisions. We have been providing support to this individual since June 2015 by way of 1 support call per week. Many of these calls have however been cancelled at the request of the individual. We have supported this individual through a contract with the Local Authority who have been responsible for the commissioning of this package. We have only been commissioned to deliver 1 support call per week, with 2 pop in visits per week."

"We work with all our staff and Councils in tackling abuse and neglect, something we are particularly proud of and have actively driven for many years."

"We take complaints from our customers very seriously and investigate them thoroughly."