Issue - meetings

Report of the Corporate Director of Culture, Strategy and Communities. To be presented by the Cabinet Member for Resident Services & Tackling Inequality.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST MADE FOR THIS ITEM:

None

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet:

1.    Noted the contents of this report and the appendices.

Reasons for Decision

In alignment with the statutory requirements set out by the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code, it is essential that the governing body maintains oversight of complaint performance. Presenting this report to Cabinet ensures transparency, accountability, and strategic governance in relation to our complaint handling processes. It enables Cabinet to assess organisational responsiveness, identify areas for improvement, and ensure that service delivery remains resident-focused and compliant with regulatory expectations.

The Cabinet Member for Resident Services and Tackling Inequality introduced the report.

It was explained that the report provided Cabinet with a detailed overview of the Council’s complaint handling performance in accordance with the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code.

It was stressed that ensuring that residents were treated fairly, listened to, and responded to effectively is central to the Council’s commitment to tackling inequality and delivering inclusive, high-quality services.

In response to comments and questions from Councillor Emery, the following information was shared:

• It was explained that there was limited capacity to handle complaints, due to the small size of the complaints team. It was stressed that this would lead to some escalation to stage two of the complaints process, due to speed. However, it was stressed that the Council had worked to change the culture of handling complaints.
  
  
• It was stressed that there were some systemic issues, particularly around housing, which would also be included within the complaints to the Council.
  
  
• It was explained by officers that there had been an increase of cases escalated to the Housing and Local Government ombudsman. However, it was noted that not all of these escalated cases were considered to be of merit by the ombudsman, but that these still did put significant pressure on the Council.

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet:

1.    Noted the contents of this report and the appendices.

Reasons for Decision

In alignment with the statutory requirements set out by the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code, it is essential that the governing body maintains oversight of complaint performance. Presenting this report to Cabinet ensures transparency, accountability, and strategic governance in relation to our complaint handling processes. It enables Cabinet to assess organisational responsiveness, identify areas for improvement, and ensure that service delivery remains resident-focused and compliant with regulatory expectations.