Ministerial thoughts on the future supervision of deputies (and ‘digital by default’)

The Rescare helpline has occasionally taken calls from members struggling with the procedures, and shocked at the cost, of the supervision process that applies to deputies. Having paid a not inconsiderable fee to the Court of Protection to apply to made a deputy, when and if appointed, a deputy will subsequently be required to pay an annual supervision fee… We therefore noted with interest this recent ministerial statement:

WRITTEN MINISTERIAL STATEMENT, Friday 5 September 2014
Publication of the Consultation Response ‘Transforming the Services of the Office of the Public Guardian: Enabling Digital by Default’
The Minister of State for Justice and Civil Liberties (Simon Hughes):

“On 21 August, the Government published the response to the consultation paper Transforming the Services of the Office of the Public Guardian: Enabling Digital by Default which sought the views on the next phase of our proposals to transform the services provided by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). This reinforces our commitment to implementing the ‘digital by default’ approach in public services.
The response announced:

• The introduction of new simplified forms for Lasting Powers of Attorney which will make it easier for those customers wishing to use the paper-based service;

• An expansion of the range of resubmitted LPA cases where a reduced application fee applies, to include those whose current LPA could only be registered after an application has been made to the Court of Protection;

• Our thinking for the future supervision of deputies.

I would urge anyone with an interest in the Office of the Public Guardian to read the response. I have deposited copies of the response paper in the Libraries of both Houses. Copies are also available in the Vote Office and Printed Paper Office. Copies are available on the internet at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/transforming-the-services-of-the-office-of-the-public-guardian-enabling-digital-by-default.”

The phrase “our thinking on the future supervision of deputies” caught our eye. You may wish to follow the links from the ministerial statement, but for convenience, we reproduce what we feel are the most relevant sections (on deputyship) below. We are aware that there have been criticisms of the current supervision procedures , and hope that this is the start of a process of improvement. We would hope for particular improvement in the year-end reporting and review procedures.

24. What type of support and monitoring do you feel is needed early on in a deputyship?

Under half of respondents answered this question. Again respondents noted that lay deputies required more support than other groups.
Many respondents agreed with the first year weighted approach proposed in the consultation, highlighting the lack of familiarity which a new lay deputy may have with their assumed responsibilities.
Other suggestions included –

‘Would be helpful if seminars could be held locally on a quarterly or six monthly basis so deputies could attend and get support and or advice where necessary or just to introduce them to people who have done the job and can give them assistance help etc.’
‘Advice about how the report form will need to be completed as the report is sent after a year of management and the deputy may find it difficult to collate all the relevant information.’
‘Spot checks and visits.’

As stated under Question 24, it is clear that support and monitoring should happen as early as possible. This will make sure deputies are put on the right footing from the beginning, increasing the likelihood that they will remain compliant. The types of support envisaged include written guidance, telephone contact, visits and social  media contacts. Deputy day seminars have been run in the past with mixed success; they will be considered again, perhaps exploiting our new technology when in place to offer several options which will be effective and efficient for all.
Advice on reporting will be provided both at the beginning of the deputyship and when the time comes to file a formal report. We envisage that a digital tool will allow deputies to record transactions as they occur, with the information collated at the year-end for review and certification by the deputy.
We intend to adjust our approach to visits so that we provide support to individual lay deputies and an assurance approach to professional and local authority deputies, looking at the management of the caseload as a whole. The assurance visits would largely be dictated by our assessment of risk and could happen whenever a need is identified or our random sampling regime dictates.