Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
Annual statistics ?Find out more about annual statistics
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Complaints upheld
69% Complaints upheld by Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
69% of complaints we investigated were upheld.
This compares to an average of 85% in similar authorities.
9 upheld decisions
View upheld decisionsAdjusted for Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames's population, this is
5.3 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents.The average for authorities of this type is
8.2 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents.Statistics are based on a total of 13 investigations for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
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Compliance with Ombudsman recommendations
100% of cases were successfully implemented by Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
100% of cases we were satisfied the Council had successfully implemented our recommendations.
This compares to an average of 99% in similar authorities.
Statistics are based on a total of 7 compliance outcomes for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
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Satisfactory remedies provided by the Council
0% Complaints with satisfactory remedy provided by Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
In 0% of upheld cases we found the Council had provided a satisfactory remedy before the complaint reached the Ombudsman.
This compares to an average of 12% in similar authorities.
0 satisfactory remedy decisions
Statistics are based on a total of 9 upheld decisions for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
View all satisfactory remedy decisions
Annual letters
We write to councils each year to give a summary of the complaint statistics we record about them,
and their performance in responding to our investigations.
Reports ?Find out more about reports
In the last nine years, the Ombudsman has published the following reports against Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
Kingston council slept on resident’s fly-tipping concerns, Ombudsman reports
A dumped mattress caused so much dismay for one Kingston resident that he took his complaint all the way to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
Couple denied chance of normal family life because of council delays
A couple were denied the chance of a stable family life because Royal Borough of Kingston took two years to give them their own personal care budget, a Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigation has found.
Service improvements ?Find out more about service improvements
Since April 2018, the Council has agreed to make the following improvements to its services following an Ombudsman investigation. We list up to 10 cases below – click ‘view all’ if there are more.
Case reference: 24 014 947
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Homelessness
- The Council will remind relevant staff of the importance of carrying out a review or appeal where a service user makes a complaint in which they are clearly unhappy with a decision that carries a right of review or appeal.
Case reference: 24 013 165
Category: Environment and regulation
Sub Category: Other
- In reply to my initially enquiries the Council noted some errors in the information it provides about the internal challenge process and the information on its webpage. Council will ensure all letters from the contractor explain people can complain to the council if unhappy with final reply from contractor. Council will also improve info on its website.I also asked the council to ensure it explains that people cannot appeal to court but can raise a defence.
Case reference: 24 001 898
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Homelessness
- The Council will remind officers dealing with homeless applicants of: a)the need to provide a full picture at homeless interviews, particularly when an applicant has children, rather than only outlining the negatives so a homeless applicant can make an informed decision about how to proceed and to prevent any suggestion of gatekeeping;b)the need to record contemporaneous notes from its phone conversations with housing applicants to ensure reliability;c)the need to carry out a suitability assessment to identify the household's needs before making a placement in B&B or other temporary accommodation;d)the need to, where a B&B placement is the only available option, notify applicants who have children, or where a member of the household is pregnant, about the six-week maximum limit and their right to request a suitability review when the main housing duty has been accepted;
- The Council will make its housing officers aware of the Ombudsman’s guide for practitioners on domestic abuse and housing decisions, published in October 2024.
- The Council will review its procurement policy to reduce the use of B&B and increase the supply of other types of temporary accommodation.
- The Council will set up a process to actively monitor cases where families are in B&B to ensure it finds alternative accommodation before the six-week limit is reached.
Case reference: 23 017 702
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Homelessness
- Review its procedures for considering housing register applications to ensure officers consider all the information provided by an applicant in support of their housing register application, send written decisions and ensure officers refer any homelessness application made at the same time to the homelessness team for consideration.
Case reference: 23 013 762
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Homelessness
- The Council will provide the Ombudsman with evidence to show it has carried out compulsory refresher training on how to handle domestic abuse cases and reviewed and amended its procedures for assessing the suitability of accommodation.
Case reference: 23 012 818
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council has agreed to review its commissioning arrangements to ensure these can meet the timescales for needs assessments and provision of SALT and OT, once an EHC Plan is finalised.
Case reference: 23 008 027
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Allocations
- Take steps to consider what it can do to identify and increase its supply of temporary accommodation which is suitable for families. The Council should report back to the Ombudsman outlining what it will do to address this shortage.
Case reference: 22 013 618
Category: Housing
Sub Category: Homelessness
- By training or other means, remind officers that they must consider all aspects of an applicant’s housing situation and the provisions of chapter 21 of the Homelessness Code of Guidance when considering if a person may be homeless.
Case reference: 22 005 177
Category: Adult care services
Sub Category: Residential care
- The Council will invite the Care Provider to undertake a review, at a senior level, within three months. The review will focus on why the Care Provider did not notify the Council or Mrs Q of the large number of incidents over a 12-month period which meant falling short of the Fundamental Standards. The purpose of the review is to identify and implement measures which can prevent an injustice to other service users, as well as demonstrating compliance with the Fundamental Standards.
Case reference: 22 010 385
Category: Benefits and tax
Sub Category: COVID-19
- The Council will take action to ensure it signposts to the Ombudsman within its final complaint responses.
- The Council will remind officers who are responsible for Council policy that the Ombudsman expects councils to offer a review or appeal on its decisions.
Last updated: 4 April 2015