Wrexham Council Set To Review Corporate Complaints Handling Policy

Wrexham Council is set to consider the way it handles corporate complaints.

As we revealed last month the council was made to pay out a total of £12,000 between three different cases in a six month period as a result of corporate complaints.

Recent reports by the Wales Audit Office (WAO) and Public Services Ombudsman (PSOW) have identified the need for a review of the local authority’s corporate complaints procedure.

Both bodies raised concerns regarding the level of responsibility devolved to departments, the lack of corporate oversight of all stages of the process and the absence of analysis to identify lessons learned on a corporate basis.

The proposed system will provide more resources to a central complaints team to ensure that complaints are consistently recorded and thoroughly investigated.

Council staff will also be given training to ensure that when customers express a concern it is taken seriously and resolved wherever possible before the issue escalates.

From October 2011 to March this year the authority received 226 corporate complaints up 16% from the 191 received in the previous period.

The environment department saw the biggest increase in complaints up 46%, mostly relating to people unhappy about highways, traffic signage and waste collection.

In addition the council’s corporate complaints officer investigated 42 complaints, over half of which (22) were against the housing and public protection department.

Of the complaints which the officer investigated 21% were either upheld or partly upheld.

The figures do not include statutory complaints which are recorded separately.

The revised policy for corporate complaints will be considered by members of the council’s executive board at a meeting on Tuesday.