Council celebrates year without ombudsman investigations

This achievement highlights the council’s ongoing commitment to delivering high-quality services, responding effectively to residents’ concerns, and resolving issues promptly and fairly at a local level.

Councillor Jeremy Hilton, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Regeneration, said: “The fact that no complaints about the council have required investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman in the past year is testament to the dedication of our staff and our focus on putting things right as quickly as possible when issues are raised. We are committed to listening to our residents and continuing to improve the services we provide”.

The ombudsman considered 11 complaints in total. Six were assessed and closed – these include complaints where the law says they’re not allowed to investigate, or it would be a poor use of public finds to do so. Five were instances categorised by the ombudsman as ‘not for us’, meaning the complainant either came to the wrong ombudsman or brought the complaint to the ombudsman before the council was given chance to consider it.

The council remains focused on putting residents first and ensuring transparency, accountability and continuous improvement in all areas of its work.