Issue - meetings

To inform the Growth & Regeneration Scrutiny Panel on the position with regards to complaints handling within Homes & Neighbourhoods.

Contact:  Michelle Anderson-Dore, Head of Partnership, Homes and Neighbourhoods, Robert Scott, Partnership Strategic Manager

Cllr Crook introduced the item advising the Panel that the report provides an update on the position with respect to complaints handling performance within Homes and Neighbourhoods, as well as measured outcomes in terms of the tenant satisfaction measures.  This is to align with the new requirements on complaints handling for social housing landlords and the updated Ombudsman Complaints Handling Code, which was published on 8^th February 2024, and requires statutory compliance by the 1^st April 2024. Ahead of April, a review is needed to identify where the Council remains compliant with the change and work is needed to ensure ongoing compliance.  Following implementation, regular self-assessment will be required, and the results will be published annually along with the tenant satisfaction measures. 

From 1^st April, the Ombudsman, has to monitor performance on complaints handling and compliance and homes and neighbourhoods could be inspected on the consumer standards at any time from then. Feedback from this Scrutiny Panel is very much welcomed to support ongoing improvement in tenant satisfaction.

This report also provides a contemporary update on complaints handling which shows that overall numbers are up on the previous period, however this forms part of a more complex picture with response times continuing to improve.  The number of cases referred to the Ombudsman has also increased slightly, however remains low and with no severe maladministration findings.  There is an opportunity to interrogate this data in detail to learn from trends and to improve both broader services, and complaints handling.

Michelle Anderson-Dore, Head of Partnerships informed the Panel that there is a new regulatory framework in relation to complaints handling, however, in terms of background from December 2020, all social landlords, including Kirklees Council, were mandated to undertake a self-assessment to measure performance in terms of complaints handling.  That was against the original Housing Ombudsman Complaints Code.

In 2022, also in line with the Complaints Handling code at the time a new complaints handling strategy was published and that was with support from the Housing Quality Network that included a new policy updated the compensation procedures to ensure it was fully in line with the code.

The latest version of the code becomes statutory from April 2024,  and work is now ongoing to ensure that all mandatory requirements are met, which will align with the new inspection regimes which will follow from April, led by the Regulator for Social Housing.

The latest consultation that informed the new code was launched last September and concluded in February.  Initially, during the consultation there was proposals around a joint code for local authorities which was joining the Housing Ombudsman Code and Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman Code.  The government has moved away from a joint code and the focus is now on alignment where possible with both codes and that will be effective from 2026.

This will be useful for local authorities because it will support the Council’s longer term aim to have one corporate approach in how complaints are handled  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8