Dudley Council will be required to respond to complaints in half the current time, following new regulations from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO). These rules, applying to all councils in England, will come into effect in April 2026.
At the upcoming cabinet meeting on December 10, Dudley Council is set to approve a revised complaints policy aligned with the new LGSCO code. The updated policy mandates that the council respond to complaints within ten days, a significant reduction from the present 20-day timeframe. Additionally, the council will be required to publish an analysis detailing how it manages complaints and the lessons learned.
A notable feature of the new policy allows the council to reclassify certain complaints as ‘service requests’ when the issue is newly reported. According to a report prepared for the meeting: “If a complaint is received and the council is encountering the issue for the first time, it may be addressed as a service request. The complainant will be contacted and updated, after which they may pursue a formal complaint if necessary.”
READ MORE: Smethwick’s Century-Old Conservative Club Transformed into Children’s Home Despite Police Concerns
READ MORE: State Pensioners Can Cut BBC TV Licence Fee to £0 With One Simple Step
Should issues persist past the initial response, the policy permits a second-stage complaint process with a response window of 20 days.
However, the report highlights potential risks in meeting these new targets, citing reduced staff levels as a key challenge. “Limited resources may impact the council’s ability to meet the ten-day response requirement,” the report warns. Failing to comply could lead to the Ombudsman publishing findings of failure and increasing compensation or remedial actions for individuals where the council is found at fault.
Currently, Dudley Council handles 80 percent of complaints within 20 days but only manages a 50 percent compliance rate for the proposed ten-day response standard, underscoring the scale of improvement needed.