Compliments & Complaints Annual Report 2024 to 2025

This annual report for Buckinghamshire Council provides a summary of the Council’s compliments and complaints for the period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, including information from the annual review letter issued by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman on 21 May.

Buckinghamshire Council serves a population of approximately 553,100 residents and delivers a wide range of services. To illustrate the scale of resident engagement, the Customer Contact Centre (CCC) alone received 354,308 contacts during the reporting period—demonstrating the high volume of interaction through just one of several channels available to residents. In this context, the number of complaints recorded represents a very small proportion of overall contact with the Council, with most interactions resolved without the need for formal escalation.

As a large unitary authority, some services—for example those within the Communities directorate such as highways and waste collection—are universal in nature and typically generate higher levels of engagement regarding service delivery. The Council values all forms of feedback as opportunities to learn, identify best practices, and drive continuous improvement.

This report covers all complaints which are managed by the Complaints and Improvements team, however, there are different regimes which cover specific areas and types of complaints. The procedures for addressing complaints about children’s and adult social care functions are specified by law. The corporate complaints procedure, which covers all other Council services, as well as other services provided by the children’s and adults team follows regulatory best practice.

In summary these processes are:

• Adult social care – a one stage process in law
• Statutory children’s social care – a three-stage process in law
• Corporate complaints – a two-stage process set as best practice

Effective complaint handling is essential to providing excellent customer service and achieving positive outcomes for our residents. Addressing issues promptly offers an opportunity to gain insights from residents and customers. These insights can be used to improve services provided, helping to maintain trust.

The report highlights improvements in services and effective issue resolution. Within the review period the Council saw an increase in stage 1 complaints which we were able to manage without an increase in response times, and more issues resolved outside the complaints process indicating a focus on customer service and taking prompt action. The Council also recorded fewer upheld complaints, suggesting where interventions are needed, they are effective.

As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance service delivery and provide comprehensive insights into complaints, we have made improvements to the Council’s case management system. One notable improvement is better reporting of corrective actions and learning from complaints. Additionally, there has been an improvement in recording of statutory complaints facilitating a better understanding of complaints relating to children’s and adult social care.