BOURNEMOUTH council has been told to apologise for delays in supporting a woman who accumulated thousands of pounds in debt for her home care.

The woman, referred to as Ms C, began receiving Bournemouth council-organised care in July 2015 and was assessed as being able to contribute £87 a week towards the total cost.

She complained to the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) last year that she was unable to afford the payments after having amounted a debt of more than £8,000 to the council.

Despite finding several delays with the council’s handling of the issue, the LGO, which investigates complaints against councils and social care providers, has not asked for the debt to be waivered after it was determined that she could afford the care costs.

Her concerns were initially raised in August 2015 and calls were also made during the following two months with the woman stopping payments in October that year.

However, the council did not appoint a case worker to look into the issues until April 2016, a delay the LGO deemed to be “a fault”.

The report says that the council had referred her to charities for support in financial management but she stopped the support after refusing suggestions including cutting back on bingo and lottery ticket spending.

Both the council and the charity determined that she would be able to meet the assessed care contributions.

The LGO investigator says: “Although there has been fault with regards to the way the council has dealt with this case, Ms C’s actions and decisions have also contributed to the situation in which she finds herself.

“Because of this, and the fact that Ms C continued to receive a service from the council since October 2015, I have not recommended a reduction in the overall arrears.

“However, I have recommended a financial remedy for the avoidable distress the council’s delays have caused.”

Bournemouth council has accepted the findings, agreeing to apologise for the delays and pay £200 for them and to also review its processes for responding to people who say they are unable to pay their assessed contribution.

The report will be considered by the council’s health and adult social care overview and scrutiny committee at its meeting on Wednesday.