DURHAM County Council has paid £1,000 to a man wrongly charged for home care for his disabled wife.

The council's social services department has also changed its procedures for assessing whether people should pay for care.

The council took action after the un-named man's complaint was investigated by the Local Government Ombudsman.

The man sought help caring for after his wife, who has multiple sclerosis, when he developed a back problem.

But officials wrongly calculated the amount he had to pay for the care because they were ignorant of the regulations and took into account the invalid care allowance and carer's premium he was receiving. Eventually, he had to give up the care because he could not afford the charges.

Ombudsman Patricia Thomas said: "It is apparent that some officers were ignorant of the regulations and that the council had failed to provide them with clear guidance on what could or should be included. That was maladministration."

She said that the council's offer of £1,000 to the complainant and changes to its procedures were a satisfactory settlement of the dispute.

The county council's deputy social services director, Nigel Porter, said the council had acknowledged the mistake and apologised.

"We have clarified the procedure so staff know what is and isn't right in making an assessment. We have financial assessment officers in each locality, and we have a clearer document so service users can see how the system works," he said.

"We are now making sure that all the financial assessments are done through five or six people, rather than a lot more, to ensure consistency."