Our role

We 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.

Our vision

To provide an independent, high quality complaint handling service that rights individual wrongs, drives improvements in public services and informs public policy.

Our values

Our values shape our behaviour, both as an organisation and as individuals, and incorporate the Ombudsman’s Principles.

Excellence

We pursue excellence in all that we do in order to provide the best possible service:

• we seek feedback to achieve learning and continuous improvement
• we operate thorough and rigorous processes to reach sound, evidence-based judgments
• we are committed to enabling and developing our people so that they can provide an excellent service.

Leadership

We lead by example so that our work will have a positive impact:

• we set high standards for ourselves and others
• we are an exemplar and provide expert advice in complaint handling
• we share learning to achieve improvement.

Integrity

We are open, honest and straightforward in all our dealings, and use time, money and resources effectively:

• we are consistent and transparent in our actions and decisions
• we take responsibility for our actions

  and hold ourselves accountable for all that we do

• we treat people fairly.

Diversity

We value people and their diversity and strive to be inclusive:

• we respect others, regardless of personal differences
• we listen to people to understand their needs and tailor our service accordingly
• we promote equal access to our service for all members of the community.