Purpose

Follow a review against the new Complaints Handling Code by
the Housing Ombudsman and Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, minor changes
have been made to the Council's Customer Feedback and Complaints Policy. These
changes are outlined within the Decision Notice.

Decision

1. To update the
Council’s Customer Feedback and Complaints Policy following a review against
the updated Complaints Handling Code (2024) by the Housing Ombudsman and
guidance from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Minor changes
have been made to the Council's Policy. These changes are as set out in the
amended sections outlined below:

4.1 We should receive your complaint as soon as possible but not more than
12 months from the incident which has led to your complaint. A complaint that
is submitted via a third party or representative on your behalf will be
investigated in line with this complaints policy with your consent.

6.5 All relevant employees or third parties that are involved in complaint
handling will:
a. have a collaborative and co-operative approach towards resolving complaints,
working with colleagues across teams and departments.
b. take collective responsibility for any shortfalls identified through
complaints, rather than blaming others and;
c. act within the professional standards for engaging with complaints as set by
any relevant professional body’.

2. To update the
Council’s Customer Feedback and Complaints Policy to add a new section on reporting
and oversight (section 20, following a recommendation from the Council’s
Monitoring Officer:

 

20.1 We maintain
transparency and oversight of complaints through our governance and reporting
arrangements. To ensure strategic oversight by Cabinet, complaints statistics
are reported quarterly to Cabinet as part of the Council’s standard performance
reporting arrangements. 

20.2 To ensure good governance, these are compared with performance data so
that the organisation can analyse performance in services and identify any
trends or areas where improvement is required and learning at the earliest
opportunity. 

20.3 In addition to this an annual ombudsman report is taken to Cabinet which
details an overview of cases in that year. Where there has been a finding of
maladministration (usually by way of a formal Report) these will be reported to
Cabinet or Council as appropriate by the Monitoring Officer on an as required
and timely basis 

20.4 In addition, Scrutiny Committee receive Cabinet’s performance reports for
noting as part of their role to hold the Cabinet to account and regulatory
committees will also receive reports regarding complaints relating to their
functions. 

20.5 The portfolio holder for Governance, Environment & Regulatory Services
has within their portfolio, oversight of complaints on behalf of the Cabinet.