Our role
We consider complaints about government departments and agencies in the UK and the NHS in England.
Our role is to consider complaints that government departments, a range of other public bodies in the UK, and the NHS in England, have not acted properly or fairly or have provided a poor service.
We aim to provide an independent, high quality complaint handling service that rights individual wrongs, drives improvement in public services and informs public policy.
Legislation
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman was established in 1967. Here you can find out more about its history and the legislative framework within which it works.
Reports and Consultations
The Ombudsman produces a range of materials to help public bodies and their customers understand her Office's expectations of complaint handling and to share the learning from complaints.
