Complaints and best value standards

Data about complaint handling forms a key part of the Government’s best value standards for local authorities. The accompanying guidance says best value authorities ‘must demonstrate good governance, including a positive organisational culture, across all their functions and effective risk management’.

The guidance sets out the following measures of best value in relation to complaints:

• Lessons are learned from complaints.
• The authority has an effective and accessible complaints process and provides appropriate redress.

The guidance sets out the following as examples of poor practice:

• Disciplinary and complaints system are not deployed, leading to a sense that certain individuals can act improperly and with impunity.
• A high rate of upheld complaints made to the Ombudsman and a lack of an action plan(s) to address areas of concern.

The statutory officers are responsible for ensuring the council adheres to these best value standards and this guide provides recommendations of how these can be delivered in relation to complaint management.