The Housing Ombudsman and the Local Government Ombudsman service are an independent body set up by law to look at complaints if you are not happy with the way the council has handled your complaint. The service is free, impartial, and independent.

Both the Housing Ombudsman and Local Government Ombudsman have launched their aligned Complaint Handling Codes and this will result in best practice for the Council in its complaint handling.
The Housing Ombudsman’s Code became statutory from 1st April 2024 following the Social Housing (Regulation) Act.

The Codes provides a single, robust set of standards which will result in best practice for complaint handling by the Council. That is to be fair, efficient, and accessible. The aims of the Codes promote the progressive use of complaints to support effective complaint handling and prevention alongside learning and development. After a thorough review by the Housing Ombudsman and Local Government Ombudsman last October, we've been working hard to make sure our services are better aligned with what you expect and deserve. 

The Codes ensures complaint handling data is being used consistently by the Council promoting engagement, setting out expectations for governance, senior executives and frontline staff.

We're committed to being transparent about our progress and ensuring that our improvements continue to focus on making your experience better.

We will publish our progress report annually which will explain what we are doing to improve how we handle your complaints and enhance the services we provide. This report isn't just about meeting official standards; it's about making real changes that you can feel and see in your interactions with us.

• The Local Government Ombudsman Code(download pdf document)
• The Housing Ombudsman Code (download pdf document)

The Housing Ombudsman expects landlords to carry out annual self-assessment against the Code and to take appropriate action to ensure their complaint handling is in line with their Code. The Council is expected to publish the outcome of the assessment so that its residents and tenants are able to easily access it.

• We have completed our Self–Assessment for 2024 - (download MS Word document)

An annual complaints performance and service improvement report must also be reported to the landlord’s governing body for scrutiny and challenge.

• Annual Complaint Handling and Service Improvement Report 2023-24 – (download MS Word document)

Please see below for more information.

• How to make a complaint to the Council and the Complaints Handling Process
• Compliments, Comments and Complaints Policy (download pdf document)

Local Government Ombudsman (LGO)

The LGO investigates complaints about most council services except for those related to housing management. You can make a complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman at any time during the process, however, they will usually only investigate a complaint that has completed the Council’s own process.
If you wish to contact the Local Government Ombudsman their contact details are:

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
PO Box 4771
Coventry
CV4 0EH

Telephone: 0300 061 0614
Website: www.lgo.org.uk 

Housing Ombudsman Service

The Housing Ombudsman has jurisdiction of all complaints about Social Housing this includes Tenants of local housing authorities. If you remain dissatisfied following the Council’s final response, you can ask the Housing Ombudsman to review your complaint.
Contact details for the Housing Ombudsman Service are:

Housing Ombudsman Service
PO Box 1484,
Unit D,
Preston
PR2 0ET 

Online complaint form: www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/residents/make-a-complaint/ 
Telephone: 0300 111 3000
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk