Complaints data for every council in the South West has been published by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman as part of its annual review of local government complaints.

In 20-21 69% of BCP Council complaints investigated by the Ombudsman were upheld. This compares to an average of 63% in similar authorities. This means that the number of times that the Ombudsman found fault in BCP Council’s actions was above average.

In 100% of cases the Ombudsman was satisfied that the Council had successfully implemented their recommendations. This compares to an average of 99% in similar authorities. Any percentage below 100% is a cause for concern.

However, in 0% of upheld cases, the Council had provided a satisfactory remedy for an issue, before the complaint reached the Ombudsman. This compares to an average of 10% in similar authorities.

BCP Council had significantly less complaints upheld in the previous year of 2019-20 (42%), it complied 100% with successfully implementing the Ombudsman’s recommendations and had a significantly higher success rate when it came to providing a satisfactory remedy before the complaint reached the Ombudsman (40%).

This data suggests that the councils ability to handle complaints successfully has been reduced in the past year.

Nationally, investigations undertaken over the past year have led to 3,104 recommendations to put things right for individuals and there were 1,488 recommendations for councils to improve their services for others – such as revising procedures and training staff. This is a higher than previous years and suggests Ombudsman investigations are increasingly finding systemic problems than one-off mistakes with local government services.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said:

“We’ve been issuing our annual reviews for the past seven years now, and while every year has seen its challenges, this year seems to have been the most difficult for local authorities.

“While the way local authorities dealt with the pressures of COVID-19 is still being played out in our casework, early indications suggest it is only widening the cracks that were already there, and has deepened our concerns about the status of complaints services within councils. These concerns are not new and cannot be wholly attributed to the trials of the pandemic.

“I am concerned about the general erosion to the visibility, capacity, and status of complaint functions within councils.

“Listening to public complaints is an essential part of a well-run and properly accountable local authority.”

The Ombudsman writes to local councils giving them a yearly round-up of the complaints the organisation has received about them. These letters are published on the Ombudsman’s website.