Stoke-on-Trent City Council apologises for false assessment report

Stoke-on-Trent social services officers have apologised to a wheelchair-bound woman after a social worker falsely claimed she could walk and look after herself.

Lisa Jeffries, pictured, suffers from a form of muscular dystrophy and has not been able to walk for eight years.

The 41-year-old, of Lightwood Road, Longton, also has difficulty moving her arms and relies on a team of carers for everyday tasks.

But when she was assessed for adaptations to her council bungalow, a social worker falsely reported in August last year that Lisa could “not only weight-bear but possibly walk”.

The report, which was filed in the name of a physiotherapist at Longton Cottage Hospital, also stated: “I feel Lisa is able to do a lot more for herself than she is doing.”

As a result of the assessment, Lisa was put on a rehabilitation scheme to encourage her to walk and perform tasks such as cooking and cleaning, which her family says are impossible for her to do in her condition.

Investigations by NHS and council officers have since found that the assessment was not written by anyone at the cottage hospital.

Mother-of-two Lisa said: “I don’t use a wheelchair because I want to. I do it because I need to due to my condition. This incident left me feeling bullied into trying to do things I couldn’t do, and I felt that everyone thought I was lying about my disability.

“Now I’ve had no social worker for six months and I’m still waiting for my bungalow to be adapted so that I can do more things for myself.”

Lisa’s father, Derek Brindley, subsequently received a written apology and was promised a full explanation.

The council’s director of adult social care, Tony Oakman, told him last month: “Clearly we have disappointed you and with regards to our social work interventions I unreservedly apologise for any distress caused. The social worker will be writing to yourself and your daughter.”

But the four-paragraph letter which the worker sent to Mr Brindley earlier this month failed to explain why she had made the false assessment.

She said: “I understand you are unhappy with the contents of the [assessment]. It was not my intention to upset or offend either yourself or Lisa and I can only apologise for any distress caused.”

Mr Brindley, aged 68, of Yarnfield, Stone, said: “This person has sent me a brief apology, but I was promised a full explanation of her actions, and her letter doesn’t shed any light on why she did what she did.”

When The Sentinel asked the council why Mr Brindley had not received the explanation he was promised, Mr Oakman said he considered the matter closed.