Assessment Manual

1. The Assessment Unit

1.1 Purpose

Assessment teams:

  • Assess all incoming complaints that come into Assessment against the criteria in the Assessment Code.
  • Where necessary, make brief, early enquiries with the complainant or the body in jurisdiction (BinJ) – usually by phone and/or email. 
  • Screen out all remaining premature complaints not identified by the Intake team.
  • Make prompt and consistent decisions on all complaints that:
    • are out of jurisdiction;
    • can quickly be resolved; or
    • do not merit investigation.   
  • Identify and pass to the Investigation Unit all substantive complaints meriting investigation. 
  • are responsible for keeping both the PA and BinJ informed of progress until they either decide the case or forward it to Investigation. When we tell the PA their case has gone to Investigation, we also tell the BinJ if we have contacted it about the case.

1.2 Key characteristics of the Assessment Unit

  • The assessment phase is a distinct process focused purely on deciding which cases merit investigation, or which we can deal with swiftly at an early stage, in line with the principles in 'What is the Ombudsman here for'.  
  • It has streamlined, flexible and simple business processes to support the rapid triage of cases.
  • It works to consistent, Commission-wide criteria as set out in the Assessment Code to ensure all complainants receive an equal service.
  • It enables the LGSCO scheme to control resource allocation more directly by ensuring we focus on those cases with the most significant injustice and public interest, while also allowing us to respond to changes in demand.
  • Subject specialism continues to have a role in Assessment. However, to maximise flexibility and consistency, it sits within multi-purpose teams rather than in separate units dealing only with specialist cases.

1.3 Staff Roles and Team Composition

The Director of Intake and Assessment (DIA)

The Assessment process is led by the Director of Intake and Assessment.     

The DIA will work closely with the Ombudsman, the Chief Executive and Director of Investigation to set strategic policy on casework, which will in turn inform procedures for filtering and assessing large volumes of incoming complaints. They will ensure operational risks are identified and managed using the LGSCO's approach to risk management.

The DIA will be accountable for the effective operation, quality, and performance of the Assessment process. They will line manage the Assessment Managers (AMs) and support them in their roles as leaders, including where needed in more complex people and performance management issues. They will also carry out any post decision reviews on AMs’ decisions.

The DIA will also liaise with the Intake process (through the Customer Service Manager) and the Investigation process (through the Director of Investigation) to ensure continuity.  

They will also have a key role in liaising with the Head of Policy and Communications to ensure the Assessment unit contributes to wider public value goals, principally through identifying emerging complaint trends and patterns.

Assessment Managers (AMs)

The AM will drive the day-to-day operations of each Assessment team. 

This is a first-line managerial post, and the AM will provide expertise, coaching and leadership to the team. They will respond to service complaints made about their own team according to our published procedure. They will also complete post-decision reviews from their partnered team on a rota basis. They will supervise team members– conducting quality monitoring, performance reviews, and dealing with day-to-day performance and managerial issues. 

The AM will also be an active operational member of the team directly delivering some of the case assessment activity. The AM’s caseload will be self-selected from incoming work.

AMs will also work with both Customer Service and Intake Managers and Assistant Ombudsmen on operational matters to ensure a smooth transition between phases to maximise efficient use of resources.

Assessment Investigators

Each Assessment team will usually have eight to 10 Investigators, whose role, with the AM, will be to conduct a rapid triage of all incoming cases, make quick factual enquiries where suitable, and then close, resolve or refer cases.

These are generic Investigator posts with the same job description as their counterparts in the Investigation phase. This enables interchange and rotation of staff between both parts of the business. 

Assessment Team Coordinator (ATC)

The ATC will actively contribute to processing and resolving incoming cases.  

Their work will include researching and gathering background information to enable Assessment decisions to be made, making quick enquiries of complainants and bodies in jurisdiction, and deciding premature complaints. They will have delegated authority to decide premature cases in their own right.  

Their work will be commissioned by the AM and Investigators through tasks set in ECHO, and on referral from Intake to a pool of ATC tasks. To ensure this happens sensibly and fairly, the AM will be responsible for overseeing that the ATC’s time is used most effectively to support the decision-making process and they are not over-burdened.  

The ATC will help to coordinate the work of the team as a whole and will ensure efficient administrative and business systems.

1.4 Key Volumes and Metrics 

The Assessment teams located across three offices are responsible for assessing all incoming work. 

The assessment procedure is flexible enough to adjust to changes in demand and workflow over time. There are no prescribed limits on the number of cases the teams will either decide early or forward to Investigation. Each case will be assessed on its own merits against the Code, and the LGSCO will assign resources accordingly. Experience shows it should generally be possible to decide 65% of cases within the Assessment Team.

All cases in the Assessment phase should be closed or forwarded promptly. Of those cases accepted for investigation, 80% should be forwarded 15 working days from receipt by Intake. The remaining cases should normally be decided within 20 working days.

1.5 Outputs from Assessment Unit

A range of outcomes is possible for complaints following assessment. These are:

  • Premature: Local resolution procedures yet to be exhausted and potential prospect of the complaint being resolved by the BinJ
  • Early Decision not to investigate: Invalid, not enough information, OJ, no enough evidence of fault or injustice, no worthwhile outcome  
  • Forward to investigation: Case merits further consideration and/or formal investigation, based on the tests in the Assessment Code  
  • Complaint upheld in Assessment: BinJ offers/takes action to remedy inj, either during its own procedures or at our invitation
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