Outreach and Public Engagement Officer
Last month, the Outreach and Public Engagement Team held roundtable discussions with organisations that help people get their voices heard, also known as advocacy organisations, at our Manchester and London offices.
I joined the team earlier this year. We focus on building relationships with organisations like advocacy groups, charities and community organisers. Since joining, my favourite part of the role has been hearing from people that support under-served communities and help those that wouldn’t typically bring a complaint to us on their own.
The roundtables offered an opportunity to do just that. We wanted to understand what sorts of barriers and challenges people who use these services face when trying to get justice when things go wrong or making complaints. We also wanted to see how we could better work together and support each other to address these barriers.
Bringing organisations together
We ran the sessions jointly with the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman and the Housing Ombudsman.
We invited representatives from organisations like PohWER and Citizens Advice alongside groups that support under-served communities, such as people with learning and physical disabilities, older people and people with mental health issues.
Understanding challenges and barriers
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, Rebecca Hilsenrath, kicked off discussions by asking what the biggest barrier preventing people from accessing justice is. We heard from a range of organisations about the problems people face, including:
- the complexity of the complaints landscape
- a lack of public understanding about administrative justice
- challenges with different channels and processes they need to acess Primary Care services.
We also heard about the difficulties some people who use advocacy services have when trying to navigate an increasingly digital NHS system. Several attendees told us that digital products are particularly difficult for people with learning difficulties or mental health issues. Other accessibility issues included finding interpreters and translators when receiving a diagnosis.
Working together
At the end of each event our Outreach and Public Engagement Team outlined how we could better work together to remove some of these barriers. Participants shared their strong enthusiasm for continued discussions and joint working.
Many organisations have already signed up to join our upcoming Complaints Champions workshops, which will help voluntary sector organisations better support people to navigate the complex complaint landscape. Planning is also underway for follow-up roundtable events scheduled for Spring 2025.
These discussions mark an important step toward fostering deeper connections and shared learning between the Ombudsman’s office and the advocacy sector. We look forward to nurturing these partnerships to create a more accessible path to justice for all.
