Recommendation 33

Many of the people making a complaint against DWP are likely to be in a vulnerable situation. Having a robust, clear and accessible complaints procedure is therefore crucial to prevent failures from reoccurring and to provide those affected with a means of redress. We are concerned that some vulnerable claimants, after pressing their cases through different layers of complaints, will be deterred from making a complaint against DWP to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) because of the ‘MP filter’. This risks preventing these claimants from having their complaints heard and reduces opportunities for the Department to learn from mistakes and failures. (Conclusion, Paragraph 136)