Complaints made by Members of Parliament and councillors to Liverpool Council are given priority over the general public a review has found.
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has undertaken an assessment of complaint handling following feedback from the government appointed commissioners overseeing the local authority. Then-chief executive Tony Reeves asked the ombudsman to carry out the external work.
Its report, which was completed in June and will go before the council’s audit committee next week, found while there were examples of good practice, “there is a perceived absence of senior leadership oversight and direction in relation to complaint handling.” In addition, customers have to go through a convoluted process and “insufficient steps are taken to place the person complaining at the heart” of it.
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The 18-page assessment, said complaints brought by MPs and elected members can be given priority and circumnavigate normal complaints procedures. There has been “no consistent approach to ensuring quality” in responses, the report found.
Had an investigation been carried out by the Ombudsman, Liverpool Council would be found at fault as it is not complying with the Children’s Social Care complaints process by not including the time taken to issue the adjudication in its timescales. Further analysis found that “inadequate systems” exist for the reporting of complaint performance and ensuring learning from complaints is shared between teams and used to improve services, which was described as “sizable risk” to the local authority in terms of the quality of service it provides, implication for resources and reputation.
As it stands, communication between the three complaints teams lacks structure and coordination, the ombudsman’s report said. In conducting interviews with staff to compile its findings, it was said historically “complaints were not seen as a priority for the council and this attitude continues to impact upon how complaints are handled now.
“The individuals we spoke to consistently reported that officers, across the range of directorates and services, do not recognise complaints as an integral part of their role, even where it is included in their job description.” The council and the Commissioners welcomed the Ombudsman’s report and accepted its recommendations.
In response, it has put together a task force, led by Jacqui McKinlay, chief operating officer, and comprising key officers from across the council, to implement the recommendations from the report. The task force categorised and prioritised the recommendations in order to bring about some “quick wins” where possible and no ensure delivery of all actions in a timely manner.
The full set of recommendations is due to be completed in this financial year.
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