Rochdale council’s legal challenge rejected and it must now consider Ombudsman's recommendations Councillors in Rochdale have been told to give proper consideration to a critical report about the way their council pays Special Guardians, after the council unsuccessfully challenged the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman’s decision and powers in the High Court. In May 2019, the Ombudsman cr ...

Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services Contents: Chapter index for Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services Updated: 24 June 2025 Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services search ...

Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services Contents: Chapter index for Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services Updated: 24 June 2025 Access denied: Reducing the barriers for Disabled people when accessing council housing and homelessness services search ...

Outsourcing at the root of too many upheld bin collection complaints Councils in England are getting it wrong too often when it comes to waste collection complaints, says the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Its new report - Lifting the lid on bin complaints – shows the Ombudsman upheld 81% of its complaint investigations into council waste and recycling services last year. This shot u ...

Council agrees to address its lack of suitable school transport for children with Special Needs Buckinghamshire County Council has agreed to look at the transport it has available to take children with Special Educational Needs to school, after it left one mother out of pocket when she had no alternative but to take her child to school every day. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman was ...

Manchester City Council to review alternative education policy in light of Ombudsman report Manchester children who were out of education before the first national lockdown are to have their cases reviewed following a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman report. That review – along with a review of the City Council’s policies for alternative education – are part of a number of changes recom ...

Worcestershire failed looked after child with special needs because of “bewildering” lack of basic knowledge A vulnerable looked after child with special educational needs missed out on five and a half terms of education and didn’t receive the therapy they needed for more than two years because staff at a council-owned company, Worcestershire Children First, had such a poor grasp of the SEND syst ...

Manual for Councils Contents: Chapter index for Manual for Councils Updated: 14 May 2025 Manual for Councils search Search this content Submit search Part 7 • How we make a decision Making a decision All complaints receive a decision. Where we have considered a complaint in more detail, we will issue a draft decision to both the council or authority complained about and to the complainant. This i ...

Flooding and land drainage issues This fact sheet is aimed primarily at people who believe action by the Environment Agency or the council has put their property at risk of flooding and may be considering making a complaint to the Ombudsman. Organisations the Ombudsman can look at We hold councils to account for services they pay other organisations, including private companies, to carry out on t ...

Monthly News May 2021 26 May 2021 City council censured for complaints response 20 May 2021 Hampshire to review SEN services following mother’s complaint 18 May 2021 Ombudsman criticises council’s Covid-19 grant allocation scheme 13 May 2021 Boy misses out on a year with his peers because of council failures