Cabinet Office consults on single Public Services Ombudsman for England

The Cabinet Office has launched a consultation on a proposal to create a new Public Services Ombudsman in England, whose responsibilities would extend to all who are delivering such services including third parties.

If implemented, the move would bring together the existing jurisdictions of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO), the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) and the Housing Ombudsman (THO).

The consultation follows a recommendation made in the October 2014 report from Robert Gordon, who was commissioned by the Minister for Government Policy to examine whether the current public sector ombudsman sector was best for citizens and Parliament, and whether it provided value for money.

The Gordon report, which can be viewed here, concluded that there was an opportunity for an improved customer experience (through an integrated service) and opportunities to improve public service systems.

Gordon noted the increased blurring of the lines between central and local government, between public and private sectors and across services, such as social care, healthcare and local government.

The Minister for Government Policy, Oliver Letwin, said there was “great merit” in the Gordon recommendations, but added that they were issues with long running consequences and needed careful consideration.

The consultation paper, which can be viewed here, said the Government was clear that the Ombudsman’s primary purpose would remain that of operating as an effective final tier of the redress process.

It added: “Any future organisation should have the scope/ability to respond to further shifts in public sector delivery to ensure additional or new jurisdictional complexities do not arise. We envisage that the Public Service Ombudsman’s responsibilities would extend to all who are delivering services, including those services which have been contracted by the bodies within jurisdiction to a third party.”

The consultation paper noted that the Housing Ombudsman spanned both public and private sector responsibilities. The Cabinet Office said the significance of housing to wider public sector delivery provided the impetus for inclusion of the Housing Ombudsman in the new body, although it also recognised that there was "a debate to be had about whether including THO in a ‘Public Service Ombudsman’ is appropriate given the increasingly commercial nature of many registered providers’ activities".

Under the proposals the expectation would be that a Chief Ombudsman would have a series of senior ombudsmen reporting to them with full expertise in specific areas such as housing.

Responding to the announcement, the Local Government Ombudsman said: “We welcome the contribution that this consultation makes to the debate about the future role ombudsmen can play in remedying injustice and improving public services.

“We will be responding in due course and encourage everybody with an interest in the work of the LGO, including users of our service and bodies within our jurisdiction, to contribute their thoughts to the consultation.”

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Julie Mellor said: “The complaints system is too complex and confusing for people. The public should not have to work out who funds or runs the service they feel let down by and then which ombudsman service to turn to, to get a final decision on their complaint.

“That’s why we very much welcome this government consultation on proposals that will end the complexity they experience when they try to complain. A unified Public Ombudsman Service will make it easier for people to get redress when things go wrong - what I call the ‘no wrong door’ approach to complaining. This will be better for the public, better for Parliament and provide better value for money.”

The consultation closes at 12 am on 16 June.