THE stereotype of the stoical Englishman who never quibbles or quails in adversity is over. We are now a nation of complainers. When the Commission for Local Administration, better known as the Local Government Ombudsman, was created 30 years ago just a few souls wrote in to say that not everything was tip-top with the way their councils were performing. Last year 19,000 complained.

Some might say that this is bad news for councils, but Tony Redmond, the chairman and chief executive of the commission, says it shows that people are more aware of the ombudsman’s existence and trust its independence. So if you have a problem, and no one else can help, maybe you can hire the O Team.

Redmond is one of three ombudsmen who divide the country between them, but with 19,000 complaints most of the work is delegated to 200 staff from varied backgrounds — people with experience in voluntary services, healthcare, regulation, even from the private sector. “We like our investigators to take on a broad caseload, but it helps to have some specialist knowledge,” Redmond says.

He and his two senior colleagues get involved with very sensitive cases. They also monitor a sample of work to ensure that it is being done properly, and co-ordinate the 200 special reports that the commission issues, where publicising maladministration would be in the public interest. That doesn’t mean that only 200 of the complaints are valid. Another 3,000 or so are settled locally. “It is important for many people that the matter is dealt with quickly,” Redmond says. The Commission aims to resolve 83 per cent of complaints within six months and 98 per cent in a year.

People are becoming increasingly aware of the ombudsman’s role — some 4,700 complaints are made without going to the council first — but he points out that in some cases the ombudsman has no power. “We got some 2,400 cases last year that were outside our jurisdiction,” he says. “These include the internal management of schools, human resources issues and procurement.” Nor can he examine a complaint where there is another form of appeal or tribunal. The ombudsman may use his discretion not to pursue a complaint, too, for example if a case is very old or where there is no personal injustice to the complainant.

The ombudsman cannot examine whether a council’s policy is right — such as on the thorny issue of school admissions — but he can look at whether the policy is applied fairly. One problem is working out what maladministration actually means. It has no definition in law, although the ombudsman has used precedent to draw up a series of faults.

But this isn’t just about pointing the finger. Redmond believes the ombudsman has a role to play in improving councils’ performance. He sends out an individually tailored report to each council every year on the complaints made against it, holds seminars on best practice and, two years ago, started a series of special reports that looked at themes and trends in complaints. The five so far have dealt with the discharge of patients from hospitals to local authority care, school admissions, housing benefit, antisocial behaviour and parking. “We feel we can offer lessons and best practice to councils,” he says.

But who guards the guards themselves? Some complainants might feel unhappy if the ombudsman doesn’t support their complaint. Redmond says that there is a possible series of appeals up the chain, ultimately leading to his desk or even to judicial review, but some people will never be happy. “At some point the complaining has to stop,” he says.

www.lgo.org.uk

Born: May 18, 1945, in Liverpool.

Career: Chief accountant at Liverpool City Council 1975-78; deputy finance director at Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council 1978-82, then treasurer and deputy chief executive at Knowsley 1982-87; chief executive of the London Borough of Harrow 1987-2001, before becoming chairman and chief executive of the Commission for Local Administration.

What he says: “It is very important that the ombudsman can offer more than just investigate complaints. We want to help councils to learn from their mistakes.”

Little-known fact: His parents ran a dance academy in Liverpool, where he taught ballroom and Latin American dance.

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