Audit and Risk Assurance Committee meeting - 25 May 2023 Welcome and introductions Apologies for Absence Declarations of interest Approve minutes of the meeting held on 26 January 2023 Matters arising (attached) CEO/Accounting Officer verbal update Deep dive - accounting practices Draft annual report and accounts 2022-23 Internal Audit annual report and opinion Internal audit progress report Audi ...

Manual for Councils Updated: 13 May 2026 Manual for Councils search Search this content Submit search Contents Part 1: Introduction Part 2: About the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman Part 3: The Complaint Handling Code and other complaints procedures Part 4: Signposting to the Ombudsman Part 5: The role of the Link Officer Part 6: The Ombudsman’s Processes Part 7: How we make a decision ...

Family left to sofa surf for 12 months after being ‘forgotten’ by Waltham Forest council A Waltham Forest family had to sofa surf for 12 months because the local council forgot about them, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found. The family became homeless in August 2022 but the Ombudsman’s investigation into the family’s complaint found the council did not do enough to help them ...

Assessment Manual Contents: Chapter index for Assessment Manual Updated: 05 January 2026 Assessment Manual search Search this content Submit search Part 1 • Glossary GlossaryLast updated: August 2025 AM Assessment Manager AT - Assessment Team ATC - Assessment Team Co-ordinator BinJ - Body in Jurisdiction CAU - Complaints about us (service complaints) DD - Draft decision DIA - Director of Intake a ...

Guide for members responsible for complaints: Effective scrutiny of complaint systems Updated: 06 February 2025 Guide for members responsible for complaints: Effective scrutiny of complaint systems search Search this content Submit search Contents Part 1: Executive summary Part 2: Key points Part 3: The Complaint Handling Code Part 4: The role of Members responsible for complaints Part 5: Who sho ...

Ombudsman publishes Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25 The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) has presented its Annual Report and Accounts to parliament for the period April 2024 to March 2025. For the second consecutive year, the Ombudsman saw a 15% increase in the number of new complaints registered. During 2024-25, the LGSCO dealt with 22,010 complaints and enquiries. Of the 4, ...

Independent external evaluation An independent external review of the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman was undertaken in late 2023 / early 2024. It found that the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has outstanding performance and is highly efficient when compared to other public sector Ombudsmen. Alongside these successes, it also found that the resources available to the organi ...

Audit and Risk Assurance Committee meeting - 10 October 2024 Welcome and introductions Apologies for Absence Declarations of interest Approve minutes of the meeting held on 4 June 2024 Matters arising (attached) Chair's update CEO/Accounting Officer verbal update 2023-24 Annual Report and Accounts Progress report from NAO Audit and Risk Assurance Committee Annual Report and Assurance Statement an ...

Post Decision Review (PDR) and Service Complaints Manual Updated: 01 June 2024 Post Decision Review (PDR) and Service Complaints Manual search Search this content Submit search Contents Part 1: 1. Definitions Part 2: 2. Expectations when dealing with requests for reviews of decisions Part 3: 3. Is it a review request? Part 4: 4. Post Review correspondence Part 5: 5. Dealing with review requests - ...

Retention and disposal of casework records policy Contents: Chapter index for Retention and disposal of casework records policy Updated: 19 November 2025 Retention and disposal of casework records policy search Search this content Submit search Part 3 • 3. ECHO records 3.1 Written material All casework documents, emails and other written material should be stored on ECHO. (See Hard copy material ...