We have laid our annual report and accounts before Parliament for the year April 2022 – March 2023.

In that year we made more recommendations to improve local services than ever before – with councils and care providers agreeing to more than 2,500 practical actions to make things better for all service users.

Service improvement recommendations are distinct from putting right the problems endured by the individuals that complained. They are typically things like reviewing policies and procedures, improving public information and training staff – and are designed to prevent other people being affected by the issues uncovered in a complaint.

In 2022-23, we dealt with 16,963 cases. Of the 4,301 complaints in which we carried out a detailed investigation, we upheld 74% (3,203 in number).

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Our consultation on our proposed joint Complaint Code with the Housing Ombudsman closed on 23 November.

Along with feedback from members of the public, we received 157 responses from local councils in England and a response on behalf of the sector from the Local Government Association.

We are considering all the responses and will provide a further update in early 2024.

We have re-organised our website to make it easier for organisations we investigate to find advice, guidance and information about our role and powers.

The new section can be found from our homepage by clicking on the large icon labelled "Information for Organisations".

This takes you to a page providing relevant information for the different types of organisation we investigate, separated for local authorities and independent care providers.

Our offices will close on Friday 22 December and reopen on Tuesday 2 January. 

Our online complaint service will also close at 4pm on Friday 22 December and re-open at 9am on Tuesday 2 January.  During this time, people will not be able to log into their online account or register a new complaint. 

Our main telephone line will reopen 10am on 2 January.