Agenda item

Members received a presentation from the Head of Business & Performance concerning the recent – and on-going – restructure of the complaints management teams across the directorate and were provided with an overview of the number and range of complaints received and considered by the team (appended to the Minutes of the meeting).

The Committee was informed that since end April, the centralised Complaints, Information and Communications Team sitting within the Business and Performance service now dealt with all compliments, complaints, Freedom of Information requests, Data Protection Act requests and MP / Member enquiries arising within the whole Children, Adults and Housing directorate – which included Children’s Services, Adult Social Care & Commissioning, Learning & Achievement and from the end of April 2014 Homes and Housing.  It was stated that complaints were dealt with slightly differently across the four service areas.

Whilst Housing complaints were dealt with through the Council’s Corporate Complaints process, complaints within Children’s and Adult Social Care were (mostly) dealt with under various legislation procedures and school appeals were likewise not part of the Corporate Complaints process but considered by panels of Independent Persons.  It was emphasised however, that whatever the route through the complaints process, a complainant could refer the matter to either an Ombudsman (Local Government or Housing) or to the Education Funding Agency if the complaint was about an appeal for a place at an Academy.

Members were informed that increasingly, complaints were resolved at an early stage – either a “pre-stage one” or an “informal” stage.  It was explained that this approach had been adopted – and was being rolled-out across the directorate – because it afforded the earliest opportunity for the service to address a problem with the greatest degree of flexibility and it was shown that this approach was consistently (though not completely) successful – but it did mean that formal complaint numbers could be kept to a minimum.

By way of example Members were informed that in the first quarter of the year, Housing had received 358 complaints (more than the other services combined).  Of these, 176 were dealt with at the informal stage, 167 resolved at Stage One and only 15 cases went beyond that: 11 resolved at Stage Two and four cases progressing to Stage Three.

There had been 227 Member/MP enquiries (during a period which covered the run-up to the Local Elections – so the figure was somewhat atypical).  193 (85%) concerned Homes & Housing.  The other areas were very few.

During the period, there had been 162 Freedom of Information requests.  It was made clear that there were fewer than 162 individual requests as most “requests” were for multiple answers and each “answer” was counted separately.  51 requests had been received for Housing, 48 for Learning and Achievement, 27 Adult Services and 36 for Children’s Services.

Data protection enquiries had totalled six: five for Housing and the sixth for Children’s Services, whilst the directorate had received a total of 90 compliments, 60 of which were for Housing and 25 for Adult Services.

The presentation concluded by the Committee being informed that the directorate was implementing a programme for more effective ways of working and that among future developments it was proposed to ensure there was Improved learning from complaints, that follow-ups with complainants was Rolled out.  In addition there would be enhanced demographic monitoring, the monitoring of complaints by Wards – which would help Members identify complaint activity within their immediate locality.  The directorate would be clarifying roles and responsibilities for school complaints and implementing the reforms relating to Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in September whilst preparing a Housing Complaints Annual Report to be brought to the committee in line with those produced for the other services.

The Committee noted the scope and content of the presentation and thanked the Head of Business & Performance and the Complaints, Information and Communications Team Manager.