Recommendations & Conclusions
17 items
2
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
We agree with the Peer Review Panel that the PHSO should provide clear reporting in an accessible format on delivering the Corporate Strategy for 2022–25 and that the PHSO should put in place detailed plans for dealing with the potential service demand implications of its increased public awareness and accessibility. …
Government response. The government says PHSO is absorbing an increase in demand and outlines planned actions including increasing efficiency, introducing mechanisms to respond to increases in demand, and identifying systemic cases, as well as establishing a new Public Engagement Advisory Group.
4
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
In its response to this Report, the PHSO should provide a detailed account of the changes being taken forward as a result of the end-to-end review of casework and the casework improvement programme, with examples of how this will improve a complainant’s ‘user journey’ and how it will review what …
Government response. The government states that they have already made improvements to several aspects of the casework process, including casework management (IT) system; forms, letters and templates; learning resources for caseworkers; and revised training and guidance for caseworkers, and are evaluating call …
5
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee accepts that some mechanism for prioritising the number of health complaints is needed and notes that there is international precedent for doing so. Nevertheless, we remain concerned with the continued approach of not processing complaints at Levels 1 and 2 on the severity of injustice scale, and the …
Government response. The PHSO considers all complaints, and uses a proportional approach, and will review the methods applied to the casework process to ensure it is dynamic and able to adapt to the levels of demand for its service.
7
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee welcomes the improvements the PHSO has made to its website to give clarity on how complaints will be considered using the severity of injustice scale. However, as indicated in the PHSO’s response to the Committee’s PHSO Scrutiny 2020–21 Report in May 2022, the PHSO should report back to …
Government response. The government acknowledges the improvements to the website and will review the content to see if further improvements can be made to explain their process and the complainant journey, whilst ensuring that the website remains succinct, accessible and easy to …
8
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The increased use and focus on developing the PHSO’s mediation capacity as a means to speed up casework is extremely welcome. However, considering the Ombudsman said that there is the potential to resolve 25% of cases by mediation rather than investigation, the scale of its use in the 2021–22 period …
Government response. The PHSO aims to double the number of mediations again in 2023-24, has trained more caseworkers, and will start publishing outcomes of complaints resolved through mediation; however, they state that complainant availability and the need for systemic investigations are limiting …
10
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee is concerned by the fact that the PHSO has not met any of its targets for the overall section Service Charter scores in the 2021–22 financial year. The Committee had previously understood that the scores were expected to improve as waiting times for cases to be allocated and …
Government response. The government states that staff turnover has stabilised and that they continue to prioritise developing PHSO's people to ensure they remain an attractive employer.
12
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee commends the pace in which the PHSO has increased its number of caseworkers across 2021–22 and developed a 10-month training academy to support their induction and development in these roles. The Committee welcomes the continued investment in training and development opportunities across the organisation, including the accreditation scheme …
Government response. The government states that the increase in staff turnover in 2021-22 was in-line with national trends following the pandemic and that turnover has now stabilized. They continue to prioritize developing PHSO's people and are committed to continuous improvement and learning.
13
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
In light of the increase in staff turnover in 2021–22, we reiterate our call from the Committee’s PHSO Annual Scrutiny Report 2020–21 for the PHSO to consider other development opportunities to encourage staff retention. Whilst the development of a 10-month training academy for new caseworkers is welcome, the PHSO must …
Government response. The government acknowledges the importance of staff retention and outlines steps taken such as training, staff surveys, and monitoring turnover, but makes no specific commitments to address the PHSO's loss of institutional knowledge or casework management pace.
16
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee welcomes the positive results of the staff survey, which saw increases in scores in headline areas, such as leadership and managing change, inclusion, and learning and development. The only headline score to deteriorate was related to pay and benefits, which the Committee recognises reflects similar trends across the …
Government response. The PHSO notes that the current labour market is challenging, but they have successfully recruited to roles which have historically been difficult to fill. They do not have plans to target applicants who are over the age of 50 as …
17
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The PHSO should report back to the Committee on how the organisation intends to continue to attract and retain staff, including those in technical digital roles and those who are over the age of 50, in light of wider trends across the public sector and economy relating to pay and …
Government response. The government acknowledges the challenges of the current labour market but does not plan to target applicants over 50, citing good representation in the PHSO workforce, and states the review of pay and grading will help them remain competitive.
18
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The PHSO should report back to the Committee in its response to this Report on the viability of breaking down a wider variety of staff diversity data by grade in its Annual Report and Accounts, as it already does for the gender of senior managers. (Paragraph 58) Value for money
Government response. The government acknowledges the importance of understanding the protected characteristics of their workforce and are planning a campaign to raise the benefits of staff declaring this information with the aim of having as complete data as possible and will report …
19
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee is pleased that the PHSO was able to secure an increased budget in the 2021 Spending Review to cope with the increased demand on its service as a result of the pandemic. This has had a positive impact on its casework improvement programme. However, we are concerned that …
Government response. The PHSO is absorbing an increase in demand and managing inflationary pressures by implementing the 2022-25 Corporate Strategy to drive efficiencies in the casework process and enhance the service, as well as reviewing corporate functions to release resources.
20
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The PHSO should put in place robust plans to deliver further efficiencies across the organisation and report back to the Committee next year on any work taken forward in this regard.
Government response. The PHSO outlines plans to implement the 2022–25 Corporate Strategy, increase efficiency, introduce new mechanisms to respond to demand, identify and progress systemic cases, and ensure reports meet high accessibility standards but does not commit to specific or new efficiency …
26
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee firmly agrees with need for legislative change of the PHSO. It has been seven years since the draft Public Service Ombudsman Bill was presented by the Government. Given that there is widespread consensus on the need to reduce the complexity of the ombudsman system in England and to …
Government response. The government welcomes the recommendation and states that it is actively raising the matter of Ombudsman reform with the Government, parliamentarians and wider stakeholders.
29
Recommendation
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee is encouraged by five organisations that have volunteered to adopt the UK Central Government Complaint Standards. We urge the PHSO to continue to engage with Government Departments and public sector organisations to increase this figure, and to report back to the Committee on how proportionate monitoring and reporting …
Government response. The government is supportive of the complaint standards and, assuming they are shown to be working in practice, the Cabinet Office should play a role in working with other departments to encourage their adoption.
31
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
Whilst the Committee discharges its scrutiny role by examining the overall administration of the PHSO and its Annual Report and Accounts on a regular basis, it should be for departmental Select Committees to scrutinise the relevant thematic PHSO reports laid before Parliament that relate to their subject areas.
Government response. The government acknowledges the Ombudsman's work and the challenges it faces, including dealing with backlogs and increasing service demand, while noting the committee's request for robust plans for further efficiencies.
33
Conclusion
Sixth Report - Parliamentary and Health…
Acknowledged
The Committee supports the PHSO’s work in promoting its services within vulnerable and marginalised communities. We welcome the PHSO’s ambition to identify barriers to access, offer guidance to organisations, and increase awareness of its services with MPs and stakeholders. We support the suggestion from the Peer Review Panel to publish …
Government response. The government will update the Committee on the Outreach program as it progresses, focusing on building trust and engagement with communities that rarely complain.