AN autistic teenager’s future could be decided by a court after his parents and City of York Council failed to agree on where he should live as an adult.
Liam Brunskill’s mother Mandy, of Clifton Moor, York, wants him to live in supported accommodation near Doncaster, close to Wilsic Hall, the residential school where he has been for seven years.
Background:
Autistic teenager Liam Brunskill is at the centre of a battle between his parents and City of York Council over his future. STEPHEN LEWIS met him>>
She says he can continue to be cared for by people he knows there, and can continue to do activities he enjoys, such as canoeing, pottery and dancing.
Nineteen-year-old Liam also says he wants to live near Doncaster, in supported accommodation near Hesley Village – a community for people with learning disabilities run by the Hesley Group, which also runs Wilsic Hall.
But City of York Council’s adult care services, now responsible for Liam, say he does not have the capacity to decide.
They want him to live in supported accommodation in York.
The dispute has dragged on for more than a year, through assessments, a best interests meeting, and a complaint by the Brunskills to the Local Government Ombudsman, which was not upheld.
The council says it now plans to refer the case to the Court of Protection.
Liam has severe autism, obsessive compulsive disorder, and a learning difficulty. Until he moved to Wilsic Hall seven years ago, her son’s life was dominated by obsessive rituals, Mrs Brunskill said.
He has made real progress at Wilsic Hall, she said: but still finds it difficult to cope with change, and reverts to repetitive behaviour when distressed.
She fears his behaviour could regress if he is brought back to York, to an environment he is unfamiliar with.
“We don’t want him to go back to how he was before,” she told The Press.
More than 1,000 people have signed a petition supporting the family, and York Outer MP Julian Sturdy says the family should be given the choice.
City of York Council said it was unable to comment on details of the case for confidentiality reasons.
A copy of the Local Government Ombudsman’s report seen by The Press, however, reveals the council’s concerns are not mainly about cost.
It had “safeguarding concerns” and concerns about the quality of care provided at Hesley Village.
Both Mrs Brunskill and Hesley Group, however, insist that these concerns are out of date. Hesley Village was now “fully compliant” with CQC standards, a spokesman said.
Pete Dwyer, director of adults, children and education at City of York Council, confirmed the case was investigated by the Local Government Ombudsman with no maladministration found. “Further, the council financed the instruction of an assessment by an independent social worker,” he said.
“The terms of the instruction were agreed with the family. The assessment concluded that the council’s recommendations for Liam’s future care were entirely appropriate.”
Background: Looking out for Liam>>
Trying to do right by Liam
WHO is best placed to decide where a teenager with severe autism should live once he becomes an adult? His family? The teenager himself? Or the local authority responsible for his care?
Liam Brunskill’s mum, Mandy, wants her 19-year-old son to continue living near Doncaster, close to the specialist residential school where he has been for seven years. He would be in familiar surroundings, cared for by people he knows, and able to continue the activities he loves, Mrs Brunskill says.
Liam himself has expressed a preference to continue living near Doncaster. But City of York Council wants to bring him back to York to purpose-built specialist accommodation here.
Mrs Brunskill, of Clifton Moor, is distraught – claiming making her son move to unfamiliar surroundings could cause him to regress.
We have absolutely no reason to think the city council has anything but Liam’s best interests at heart. But it is hard to understand what the authority’s thinking is – because it will not comment on details of the case.
We do know, from an ombudsman’s report (which did not uphold the Brunskills’ complaint against the authority) that money is not the main issue. The authority has genuine concerns about the family’s preferred place of residence for their son – although both Mrs Brunskill and the company which runs the accommodation insist these have been overcome.
Ultimately, it may be the Court of Protection which decides. It would surely be better if a solution could be reached without the need to go to court. The key thing, however, is what is best for Liam. If it comes down to it, we can only hope the court reaches a decision that is right for this young man.
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