Agenda item

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Legal & Corporate Compliance.

The Head of Legal & Corporate compliance presented the report which outlined the updated Concerns and Complaints Policy.

The Officer reported that as part of the Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Act 2019, a new Complaints Standards Authority (CSA) had been created.  Policy and Guidance had been issued under the powers contained within Section 36 of the Act and they applied to public service providers in Wales.  The CSA has produced a model Concerns and Complaints Policy and there was an expectation for public authorities to adopt the model policy to ensure consistency of complaints handling throughout Wales.  The draft Policy had been brought to Committee prior to it being presented to Council in July.

The Officer explained that the Council was required to provide the CSA with complaints data on a quarterly basis and report to the Governance and Audit Committee the number and types of complaints received, their outcomes and any remedial action taken as a consequence.  It was for the Council to determine how frequently it should receive such reports, however this should be at least twice a year.

The Officer also reported that the Committee would now have additional functions to include a role in oversight for complaints and would have statutory powers to:

·        Review and assess the authority’s ability to handle complaints effectively; and

·        Make reports and recommendations in relation to the Authority’s ability to handle complaints effectively.

The Officer pointed out that this Policy referred to service complaints and not complaints relating to conduct which sat with the Monitoring Officer and the Standards Committee.

In response to a question raised, the Officer explained that service complaints were referred to the Department responsible for the service, and hopefully resolved at an early stage.  However, it this was not possible it was escalated further.

A Member referred to the fact that schools had their own complaints procedures in place, and asked how these would align with the new Policy.

The Officer confirmed that both Social Services and Education had adopted their own complaints procedures.  Work would be done moving forward to review all the Council’s co-joined complaints procedures to ensure consistency with the required standards of the new CSA, and to keep those documents under review.

A Member referred to the additional function for the Committee to receive complaints against the Authority, and asked whether this would include complaints in relation to Education and Social Services.

The Officer said currently complaints in those areas were reported to the relevant Scrutiny Committee.  However, to ensure effective oversight of all complaints procedures it was intended to bring these to the Governance & Audit Committee, and the Officer confirmed that this would be discussed with the Departments.

A Member said there was no mention that a person could nominate a spokesperson to act on their behalf and suggested that this be included within the Policy.

The Officer noted the Member’s comment.

RESOLVED that, subject to the foregoing amendment, the report be accepted and the Committee agree the information contained within the Concerns and Complaints Policy before adoption by Council; and that a complaints report be presented to the Governance & Audit Committee on a bi-annual basis in October and April each year (Option 2).