Source · Select Committees · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
Recommendation 10
10
Acknowledged
Paragraph: 40
The Committee is concerned by the fact that the PHSO has not met any of...
Conclusion
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 closed were reduced. However, during 36 Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Scrutiny 2021–22 the oral evidence session in November 2022, it was reiterated that the main driver of higher customer satisfaction is whether a case has been upheld regardless of the quality of customer service. If the latter is true, it is clear that the current mechanism for collecting customer feedback through the Service Charter is unsatisfactory.
Government Response Summary
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.
Paragraph Reference:
40
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The increase in staff turnover in 2021–22 was in-line with national trends following the pandemic. Turnover has now stabilised. As outlined in the Business Plan, we continue to prioritise developing PHSO’s people to ensure that we remain an attractive employer with an engaged, diverse, and inclusive culture where everyone lives our values and works collaboratively to achieve common goals. We are committed to continuous improvement and learning. In 2021–22 we delivered over 2,000 days of training through over 500 online and offline courses and short learning labs. Our staff survey scores for learning and development have improved in 2021–22 compared with last year. This will support the retention of staff, whilst acknowledging that attrition can also be positive as new staff bring a fresh perspective and different experiences and skills.