Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Today PHSO marks a new milestone in making complaints count, with the launch of the UK Central Government (UKCG) Complaint Standards. The Standards will transform the way UK Government departments handle complaints and how they use learning to improve public services.
PHSO developed the Standards in collaboration with representatives from central Government departments, other public bodies, and advice and advocacy groups. They are designed to support the work many Government organisations have already done to strengthen their complaints processes.
The Standards will provide a strong foundation to make the process quicker and easier. They will also help organisations learn from complaints and make lasting improvements to public services.
The heart of an effective complaint handling system
The Complaint Standards help build a complaint handling system that provides a consistent and positive experience for everyone involved. They are designed to provide a guide that can be tailored by each Government department to best fit their service, size and structure.
We believe at the heart of an effective complaint handling system there are four core pillars, which these Standards are based on:
- welcoming complaints in a positive way and recognising them as valuable insight for organisations
- supporting a thorough and fair approach that accurately reflects the experiences of everyone involved
- encouraging fair and accountable responses that provide open and honest answers as soon as possible
- promoting a learning culture by supporting organisations to see complaints as opportunities to improve services.
Support for the Complaint Standards
In developing the Complaint Standards, PHSO held a wider consultation with Government complaint handlers, the public, and third sector and advocacy organisations.
The results showed widespread backing for the Standards, with 82% of respondents saying it was clear what they were trying to achieve and 91% supporting their aims. I’m very glad to see this support for the Standards.
Although the Complaint Standards are PHSO-led, for them to be successful it is vital that they are owned and championed by the sector. I hope that senior leaders from across central Government will commit to embedding them in their service, creating a culture where complaints are embraced and welcomed as opportunities to learn.
Over the coming months PHSO will continue to develop and share a suite of resources to support departments and other public bodies to embed the Standards into practice.
Looking beyond the launch of the Complaint Standards
As we look beyond the launch of these Standards, the need for PHSO to be granted Complaint Standards Authority powers becomes even more important.
Such powers would enable us to monitor consistency and help make sure staff and organisations receive tailored support to deliver the best possible service for users. This would also align PHSO’s powers with public service Ombudsman organisations in the UK’s devolved nations, where these powers already exist.
My colleagues and I will continue to work with Government organisations to improve complaint handling in public services through the UKCG Complaint Standards. I look forward to seeing and reporting on the results of this work in the near future.
