Compliments & Complaints Annual Report 2024 to 2025

According to the Local Government Act 1974, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) has two primary statutory duties: investigating complaints against local authorities and providing advice and guidance on good administrative practices. The LGSCO documents complaints and enquiries received by subject and records decisions made, which are included in the Ombudsman Annual Review Letter (Appendix B). This letter aims to inform councils and other authorities about the number and nature of complaints dealt with concerning that authority during the previous financial year.

We acknowledge that the Annual Letter offers valuable insights for enhancing our learning and improving our services. Escalation to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) represents the final stage in the Council’s complaints process, providing not only critical perspectives on our organisational approach but also an independent benchmark of our complaints handling and performance relative to other comparable councils.

From the 197 decisions made, there were 57 comprehensive investigations. This results in a rate of 8.8 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents. The average for comparable authorities is 5.3 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents. Examining the data and comparing it to similar authorities shows a correlation between the number of complaints escalated and the percentage of upheld decisions. There has been an increase in cases escalated to the Ombudsman year-on-year, although the overall number of complaints received has not significantly increased.

The escalation rate from stage 1 to the Ombudsman was 8%, with only 2.5% proceeding to a full Ombudsman investigation. It should be noted that Ombudsman complaints may relate to stage 1 complaints received in previous years. SEND cases have increased at all stages and this may relate in some way to complainants having more insight via social media and from the news as well as national issues.

Buckinghamshire Council had 40 compliance outcomes and remains 100% compliant with the LGSCO remedy recommendations. The council resolved 12% (6 cases) of complaints before reaching the Ombudsman, an increase from last year and above the 10% average of similar authorities.

The results are based on the number of LGSCO investigations conducted during the year for a given authority and the volume of upheld cases.