A DEMENTIA sufferer was so malnourished after her care plan was not correctly carried out she lost a third of her body weight.

The elderly woman, in her 90s, weighed just under nine and a half stone when she entered Murdoch House in Murdoch Road, Wokingham, in 2010 but by the time she left two years later her weight had plummeted to a meagre six and a half stone.

At one point she fell and broke her hip, which prompted her family to go to the authority to complain about the lack of adequate care, who then admitted the woman's weight was a concern.

The council apologised and offered the family £500 and accepted they had not supported the placement for the whole time the woman was there.

Unhappy with the cash settlement, the family complained to the Ombudsman, whose investigation found there was a lack of action undertaken to address the weight loss and care provided.

"Sadly, this is an example where a vulnerable woman and her family have suffered because their councils has neglected their duty to them," said local government ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin.

"This case highlights the need to remind councils that when contracting out services to third parties, they cannot contract out the accountability for those services.

"In this case the woman was bored, lost a considerable amount of weight and her well-being was not promoted."

Suffering from aphasia, which means she has trouble understanding speech due a damaged area of her brain, her programme included a multitude of instructions.

It included her supervision, help with mobility so she could change position in bed, help to take her medication and to ensure she always had adequate food and drink.

Wokingham Borough Council accepted the report from the ombudsman and plan on making sufficient changes, they said.

"We are profoundly sorry for the poor care provided in this case and for the distress caused to the client and her family," said Cllr Julian McGhee, executive member for health and well-being.

"The care she received was below the standard we expect from our care providers and we apologise that we did not identify these problems."

To remedy the situation, the council has been asked to pay the mother a further £3,500 and her daughter £500.

Further 'quality' visits to the care home in light of the family's complaint will be carried out as a result, the authority said.