It gives me great pleasure to introduce the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s UK Central Government (UKCG) Complaint Standards. I frmly believe that these new Standards will transform the way UK Government departments handle complaints and use learning to improve public services.
The Complaint Standards have been developed by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO), in collaboration with representatives from central Government departments, other public bodies, and advice and advocacy groups.
They are the culmination of many months of work and I am very grateful to everyone involved. The working group has been invaluable in shaping the Standards and making sure they are of practical relevance to complaint handling teams from across Government.
As a first step towards building a complaint handling system that provides a consistent and positive experience for everyone involved, they are designed to provide a guide that can be adapted to suit the unique environments which exist across central Government and public bodies.
We believe at the heart of an effective complaint handling system 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.
In developing the 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 across central Government commit to embedding them in their service, creating a culture where complaints are embraced and welcomed as opportunities to learn.
The Standards themselves should be viewed as living principles that can be shaped as part of an ongoing process to make improvements in complaint handling and public service delivery. Over the coming months we will continue to develop and share a suite of resources to support departments and other public bodies to embed the Standards into practice. This will include a full set of guidance modules and accompanying training.
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 the public service Ombuds in the UK’s devolved nations, where these powers already exist.
We look forward to working with Government organisations over the coming months to continue to improve complaint handling in public services through the UKCG Complaint Standards.
