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What is the Parliamentary Ombudsman?

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) provides an independent complaint handling service for complaints that have not been resolved by the NHS in England and UK government departments. Separate ombudsman services exist in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The PHSO comprises two ombudsman services established by separate acts of Parliament: The Parliamentary Ombudsman and the Health Services Ombudsman. Technically separate, these posts are held, by convention, by the same person.

Because of differences in their founding legislation, individuals need an MP to sign a complaint form before it can be submitted to the Parliamentary Ombudsman. See the PHSO guide: Helping your constituents use our service.

Complaints about the NHS in England do not need to be signed by an MP. See the constituency casework article NHS complaints in England for more information.

The PHSO is independent of government and is accountable to Parliament through the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee for its performance.

Why complain to the Parliamentary Ombudsman?

The PHSO looks at complaints that individuals have suffered an injustice because a public body has not acted properly or fairly or has given a poor service, and not put things right.

The PHSO has the power to investigate, recommend corrective action, and issue a report. The service is free to use, making it accessible to people who cannot afford to take their complaints to the courts.

If the ombudsman decides that the organisation has got things wrong, it can make recommendations to put them right. This can include explanations, apologies, and recommendations for the service to learn and improve.

Complaining to the Parliamentary Ombudsman

To complain to the PHSO, the complainant must first have put their grievance to the department or public body concerned to allow officials to respond and put things right. The PHSO will only usually consider cases which someone has brought within a year of the person first becoming aware of the problem.

For some government services, complaints must go to a ‘second tier’ review before the PHSO can investigate, such as the Adjudicator’s Office (which considers complaints about HM Revenue and Customs and the Valuation Office Agency) or the Independent Case Examiner (which considers complaints about benefits, work and financial support).

The PHSO has published Tips on making a complaint about UK government services and a complaint checker tool, Can we look into your complaint?.

If the organisation being complained about does not reply in the time it said it would, or the complainant is running out of time to bring the complaint to the PHSO, they should contact the PHSO on 0345 015 4033.

The PHSO: How we deal with complaints webpage explains how the PHSO decides whether to investigate it and what happens if it does. The PHSO Service Charter sets out what to expect from the PHSO.

If it seems to the PHSO that legal action would be the appropriate route to get the desired results, the PHSO may recommend going to a court or a tribunal rather than investigate the complaint.

The PHSO website provides a comprehensive list of government departments and other public organisations the PHSO can investigate. There are some organisations the PHSO cannot investigate.

PHSO: Helping your constituents use our service provides a checklist to help guide constituents.

Complaint forms for UK government services and for NHS services in England can be downloaded from the PHSO website.

The Ombudsman and devolution

The Parliamentary Ombudsman deals with reserved matters in relation to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland as well as complaints about maladministration in UK Government departments, their agencies and some other public bodies in relation to England. Separate ombudsman structures exist in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland:

What can the PHSO do?

If the PHSO finds the organisation at fault, it recommends actions to put things right. These can include asking the organisation to acknowledge mistakes and take steps to learn and improve, apologise or make a payment. The PHSO does not have legal powers to force organisations it investigates to follow their recommendations, but but organisations usually agree to them.

The PHSO’s Principles for Remedy set out guidelines for how public bodies provide remedies for injustice or hardship resulting from their maladministration or poor service. See also Principles of Good Complaint Handling and Principles of Good Administration.

The PHSO shares findings from its casework to help improve public services and complaint handling. Casework decisions are published two months after the case is closed. Names of individuals involved are not disclosed.

Where an injustice seems unlikely to be remedied, the Ombudsman can present a special report to Parliament.

What if I’m not happy with the Ombudsman’s decision?

There is no formal right of appeal against decisions of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO).

It is possible to request a review of the decision within a month of that decision (see the PHSO’s complaints process and how to give feedback).

Individuals can apply to the High Court to challenge an ombudsman’s decision because it is legally flawed – this is called judicial review. Judicial review is primarily concerned with the issue of whether the correct legal basis was used to reach a decision rather than whether the decision was right decision.

The judicial review procedure is both complex and costly, and constituents should seek legal advice from a suitably qualified professional before considering it. The statutory time limit for bringing a claim for judicial review is three months from the date of the ombudsman’s final decision.

The Ministry of Justice has published a Pre-Action Protocol for Judicial Review (England and Wales) that sets out a code of good practice and the steps which people should generally follow before making a claim for judicial review.

The Library briefing Legal help: where to go and how to pay provides information on sources of advice.

Further information

About the author: Sarah Priddy is a parliamentary researcher at the House of Commons Library.

Constituency casework – House of Commons Library | papers@parliament.uk

Disclaimer

The Commons Library does not intend the information in this article to address the specific circumstances of any particular individual. We have published it to support the work of MPs. You should not rely upon it as legal or professional advice, or as a substitute for it. We do not accept any liability whatsoever for any errors, omissions or misstatements contained herein. You should consult a suitably qualified professional if you require specific advice or information. Read our briefing for information about sources of legal advice and help.

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