When discussing the Service complaints process, people often focus on the complainant and the complaint handler. We want to ensure the complainant has the support they require and the complaint handler the knowledge and resources to investigate and decide the matter in a timely manner. However, there are other people involved in the complaints process […]
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Christmas is almost upon us and whether you celebrate it or not, it is widely considered a season of giving. However here at the OSCO, we also believe that it is the season for giving back which we try and do each year. The festive season is a busy and exciting time of the year. […]
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Earlier this month the Legal Ombudsman published research they had conducted on ‘The Language of Complaints’. Although focussed on their role and that of legal service providers, there are lessons to be learned for all complaint handlers, including my office. When a person makes a complaint it is generally about an issue that has caused […]
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This year marks 30 years since the introduction of Black History Month. The theme for this years’ event within the Civil Service is “Empower and Exceed” – a timely message and one we should carry with us year round as I discuss this month in my blog. This year marks 30 years since the introduction of […]
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On 9th – 10th October I had the great honour to co-host the 9th International Conference of Ombuds Institutions for the Armed Forces (ICOAF) in London. This was the culmination of a significant part of the work my office has done over the last two years, outside of our essential operational role. I am exceptionally […]
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Last month we asked our Twitter followers what issues they thought I should be blogging about. The responses all centered on the same theme – what happens if there are repercussions for making a Service complaint? This is a longstanding area of concern for myself and many members of the Armed Forces and their loved […]
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The role of an Ombudsman is not only to carry out investigations but to make recommendations. In addition to the recommendations I make each year in my Annual Report, I have the power to make recommendations in individual cases as part of my findings. In this blog I will be explaining more about this particular […]
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This month I had the privilege to sit on a panel for The Girls’ Network; a charity that aims to inspire and empower girls from the least advantaged communities. While this work sits outside of my role as Ombudsman, it is so important to me that I wanted to use my blog this month to […]
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Today is Reserves Day – an annual day that aims to showcase the important contribution Reservists make to the UK Armed Forces. Therefore it is only fitting that my blog this month looks at Reserve Forces and why they are a particular area of focus for my office this year. Each year, in addition to […]
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My role as the Service Complaints Ombudsman is to provide independent and impartial oversight of the Service complaints system. Much of that role is about putting things right when they have gone wrong, but what happens when something that we do goes wrong? In my blog this month I will be looking at that issue […]
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