A message from the Ombudsman
It has been a busy and significant few months for the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, and I am pleased to share some highlights with you in this update.
One of the most notable developments has been the announcement of the first review by the new Ethics and Integrity Commission (EIC). The review is looking at the public sector Ombudsman system, with a particular focus on how Ombudsman schemes can better identify systemic issues and drive improvements in public services. We have now submitted our response to the call for evidence and I look forward to the opportunity to present further evidence in person. This is an important moment for us to demonstrate the value of what we do and how we contribute to raising standards across local government and social care.
Our casework continues to reflect the very real impact that poor decision-making by public bodies can have on people's lives. We have published reports this quarter highlighting failures in housing support for homeless individuals, including people left sleeping rough because councils did not follow the legal tests required of them. In one case, Leicester City Council ultimately accepted our recommendations after initially refusing to do so - meaning two families have now received the redress they deserved.
We have also reported on failures to deliver speech and language therapy to children with special educational needs, incorrect assessments of school transport entitlements, and a case where a disabled man ended up in hospital after being left without proper interim accommodation. Behind every one of these cases is a person who came to us in real difficulty, and I am proud of the dedication our organisation brings to securing meaningful outcomes for them.
Amerdeep Clarke,
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
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Talking to care providers about our work
We recently launched our campaign to help care providers improve how they handle complaints. As part of this campaign, we have been delivering webinars to care providers about strengthening complaints handling in adult social care and encouraging providers to become 'complaints confident'. We discussed practical steps providers can take to ensure complaints are handled fairly, transparently, and consistently, which helps to support earlier resolution of issues without needing to escalate.
The webinars have been well attended, and we hope to build on this success by engaging with more care providers through the year.
Our appearance on a BBC Scotland documentary
Earlier this month we appeared in an episode of Disclosure, BBC Scotland's investigative journalism programme.
The episode focused on Adult Social Care in Scotland, with particular attention to funding and contracts. We spoke with journalist Catriona MacPhee about our work, the challenges we observe in England, and the absence of independent redress for people in Scotland who receive independently-funded care.
As it stands, the Scottish Ombudsman does not have jurisdiction to investigate complaints relating to privately-funded care north of the border, where in England people with complaints can come to us for redress.
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New training launch
After securing CPD Accreditation last year, we were excited to build on that success and deliver an even more engaging and impactful training experience for councils and care providers. Therefore, we temporarily paused our training programme to allow us to review and refresh the course content. Training will be recommencing from the end of May 2026.
Looking ahead, we are expanding our offer by introducing subject-specific modules later this year. The first module will focus on supporting complaint managers in aligning councils' local complaint policies with our Complaint Handling Code.
Local Elections in England
Local elections are taking place across England next week, giving communities the opportunity to have their say on local issues.
Over the past few weeks, we have been observing the pre-election period, which plays an important role in ensuring elections are free and fair. During this time, organisations pause the publication of material that could influence the outcome of an election or compete with those campaigning, helping to maintain a level playing field for all candidates.
For information on how election-related complaints are handled, our online factsheet is a helpful resource.
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