Agenda item

To submit a report by the Director of Function (Council Business)/Monitoring Officer.

The report of the Director of Function (Council Business)/Monitoring Officer incorporating the Annual Letter from the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW) 2023/24 for the Isle of Anglesey Council was presented for the Executive’s consideration. The Letter summarised the performance of the Council in relation to the service complaints received and their outcomes during 2023/24, cases involving the Ombudsman’s intervention and complaints made under the Code of Conduct for Members.

The headline messages in the Annual Letter were presented by the Legal Services Manager. Those showed that there had been an increase in the number of service complaints made to the PSOW although the number of investigations remained nil. The Council’s complaints handling performance has deteriorated with increased reliance on intervention from the PSOW. Corporate staffing issues are considered to be a significant contributing factor to this deterioration in complaints handling with one of two keys posts still vacant and the second key post having also become vacant on 24 November 2024. The Legal Services Manager referred to the specific actions both planned and in progress to improve the complaints handling performance and process including the introduction of a new CRM system. The CRM platform is intended to provide more automation and real time data in relation to service and corporate performance and will be routinely monitored by Heads of Service and the Leadership Team although it is unlikely that services will have increased capacity to deal with complaints.

The Legal Services Manager confirmed that no Code of Conduct complaints about County Council members or Town and Community Council members were referred to the Standards Committee or the Adjudication Panel for Wales by the PSOW in 2023/24.

In noting the increase in the number of service complaints compared to the previous year, the Executive also noted that none were investigated by the PSOW and that 9 complaints (24%) were in relation to how complaints were dealt with, with the corporate vacancy having been a key factor in this regard. The Executive emphasised the importance of complaint outcomes and of continuing to learn from complaints to reflect on and improve practices and noted the proposed resolutions to drive improvement.

The Chief Executive advised that the Council is operating under pressure in several areas at a time when demand is on the increase as are public expectations of the Council to be able to deliver accordingly whereas Council funding is decreasing. He referred to the vacant corporate post as a critical issue in relation to complaints handling performance carrying with it a level of expertise that makes it difficult for another person to step in temporarily. It is anticipated that filling the vacancy permanently will see an improvement in complaints handling performance.

It was resolved –

• To note and accept the Annual Letter from the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW) for 2023/24.
• To authorise the Director of Function (Council Business)/Monitoring Officer to write to the PSOW to confirm that the Executive has given formal consideration to her Annual Letter.
• To provide assurance that the Council will continue to monitor complaints thereby providing Members with the information required to scrutinise the Council’s performance.
• To continue supporting the Council’s development of its CRM system as a platform for processing complaints and providing “live” data on complaints handling performance, by service, for relevant officers, heads of service and the Leadership Team.