21/09/2023
Please could you confirm what is the agreed retention of documents policy within the Ombudsman Service (please send me a copy of the policy document), and if you have observed these policies why would you have a policy whereby you destroy all relevant documents within a matter of two or three weeks following the conclusion of your work.
Please provide the following information/ hard copy policy documents on the issues raised below. 1. How many complaints have you accepted for investigations, where the issues giving rise to the complaints occurred more than one year ago. 2. What test did you apply to accept these complaints and why? 3. What policy do you use to determine the substance of the complaint letters to be responded to. 4. What policy do you use to reject complaints when the complainant has followed HMCTS' complaints process? 5. How do you determine which complaints to investigate when they are outside of a year because HMCTS has delayed to provide (a) reply and (b) final reply in breach of their published timescale 6. How do you arrive at decisions on complaints where HMCTS have confirmed that it does not have letters that have been signed for as received by HMCTS at its offices? 7. Do you always decide letters, without having sight of all the complaint letters? 8. Not to comment upon HMCTS's substantial delays to respond to complaint in breach of its published policy. 9. Do you consider HMCTS's substantial delay to provide final response letters puts complainants at advantage.? 10. Do you consider the effect of HMCTS's substantial delay to respond to complaint letters, if so, what? 11. What is your timescale/policy to send out investigations decisions? 12. Do you provide drat decision before sending out your final decisions? 13. What is your policy on redress to complainants when you have delayed sending out your final decisions. 14. How many times have you not sent (a) draft decisions and (b) final decisions (c) what were the reasons for (a) and (b) above. 15. Under what circumstances do you extend time to provide responses to your decisions and what is the length of time you allow for responses? 16. In relation timescales, what weight, if any, do you apply to complainants who have previously applied to your service 17. In relation to rejecting complaints, do you apply a higher standard to complainants who have previously referred complaints to you. 18. Why and what factors do you consider when rejecting complaints from those who have preciously used your services. 19. Please provide the information with regards to age, sex, nationality, ethnicity and race. Redact any personal information.
18/09/2023
Additional FOIA questions in furtherance of your emailed, and attached, response(s).. Q.1) Are the attached/above cited HMCTS & DWP complaint decision outcomes, from the number 14172 that your emailed response of today states that '...Over the last 8 years, a total of 14172 complaints were accepted for detailed investigation....'? Q.2) In reference to your attached information, (that is also cited above)-could you supply to me: i.) brief details of the category, or type, of each complaint that was resolved/upheld/partially upheld, in each year from 2015-2023, pertaining to the HMCTS & the DWP? ii.) PHSO complainant's complaint details, and/or case reference numbers, (that I may read of each complainant's case & decision from the PHSO's Case Decisions website page)- of each PHSO complaint that was resolved/upheld/partially upheld, in each year from 2015-2023,-pertaining to the HMCTS and the DWP? Q.3) From 2015-2023, how many complaints has the PHSO resolved/upheld/partially upheld, ,(and can you supply to me case details including case reference numbers) pertaining to, i.) Independent Case Examiner's Office? ii.) The Growth Company / Standguide / Avanta / G4S', (and any other Work Program, oe Welfare-to-work, Providers,)? iii.) Hays Specialist Recruitment Ltd / Morgan Hunt (UK) Ltd / Capita PLC or Capita Education Resources Ltd / Protocol National Ltd?Quality Teachers Ltd, (& any other Employment/Staff Recruitment Agency)?
15/09/2023
You do not have a blanket exemption under FOI 2000 or GDPR 2018 for cases that the PHSO have already completed/finalised (cases that are now inactive) and as such I require disclosure of the following specifically and explicitly : 1. Case progression statistics and data that pertain to delays within the PHSO in the past three years. 2. Case management logs that pertain to delays within the PHSO and its casework in the past three years. 3. Data and statistics held for cases withdrawn by the complainant due to excessive delay or dissatisfaction with the PHSO at a given stage of the PHSO complaint process in the past three years. 4. Case waiting time data for cases in the past 3 years (from case initial intake to final response). Broken down as reasonably practical or in another format. 5. Case waiting time data from the intake to initial investigation stage. 6. Case waiting time data from the initial investigation stage to final response stage. 7. Internal PHSO management guidelines and issued directives that pertain to the internal management of casework delays and associated costs, including KPI data for this area of PHSO operations. Vague and brief written summaries (particularly those that regurgitate any press or website release) will not suffice. I require specific documentation and written evidence held by the PHSO of the above FOI questions (1-7). I believe that these above questions are sufficient to provide detailed information that can then inform the FOI disclosure within a manageable and reasonable time frame for you to disclose.
14/09/2023
Could I get a freedom of information request concerning reporting of crimes to Durham Constabulary. I would like every suspected crime that I have reported in five years. Requested from Durham Constabulary in May. No response to date and I believe they are over the time scopes of 30 days. Requested from EE in June, again received nothing, I requested all details of contact with Ee over contract period.
13/09/2023
For the years in columns B-I could you please provide information on "healthcare complaints" made by individuals held in the Immigration Removal Estate.* 1) How many complaints regarding healthcare where referred to the PHSO, following an investigation by the healthcare provider. i.e. where the detainee was not statisfied by the response of the healthcare provider. 2) How many of these complaints were upheld by the PHSO? * Immigration removal estate includes immigration removal centres (IRCs), contracted short-term holding facilities (STHF) (Home Office supplier operated); including holding rooms and residential short-term holding facilities, pre-departure accommodation (PDA) and during escort. "Healthcare complaint" is classed as any expression of dissatisfaction about any NHS commissioned service in the IRC estate or about the attitude, behaviour or conduct of healthcare staff working in those establishments. See Home Office Guidance on Handling Complaints - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/handling-complaints-in-immigration-removal-centres/accessible#healthcare-complaints-england
For each of the last five financial years, please provide your complaint outcome statistics - complaints received, upheld, partly upheld and not upheld - relating to complaints from people whose babies died or suffered harm at the following three NHS hospital trusts: Shrewsbury and Telford, East Kent, Nottingham I wish to revise my request by limiting it to 'Complaints accepted for Detailed investigation'. Please also provide the total number of complaints received for each Trust.
12/09/2023
Does the Parliamentary Ombudsman- 1) Only believe members of the public grieve only at the death of male close family members and not for close female members? 2) Only believe that members of his own staff suffer discrimination, harassment and victimisation under the Equality Act which should be considered and not members of the public, so these acts against the Equality Act should not be given consideration when they happen to members of the public? 3) Only believe that members of his own staff should be given consideration if they suffer/have suffered all forms of abuse(financial, physical, psychological and emotional), including coercive control, however no consideration when this happens to members of the public? 4) Not accept as shown by so many studies that the grief from death by suicide is greater than just a natural or accidental death? 5) Not accept as shown by so many studies that the grief from death of a child is greater for a parent than the death of other adult relatives? 6) Not accept as shown by studies that the grief from death of a second child is greater for a parent than the death of only one child, especially if the deaths do not occur from the same accident or illness? 7) Not accept that anyone, including members of the public, can suffer detriment to their well being/health and psychological stress, if they suffer from financial, physical, psychological and emotional abuse, including coercive control, discrimination, victimisation and harassment, including large operations for suspected cancer, debilitating illnesses like shingles, poor mental health, especially if support is not available/given from Adult Services or the police to stop the abuse and harassment? 8) Not accept as shown by many studies that the grief from a death of a close relative, for whom you were a carer for, under the Care Act, especially if you were doing 5 hours per day caring can make grief more complicated? 9) Not accept as stated by Cruse the charity that the following can all make grief more complicated and prolonged- • How the person died: If the person died in a sudden or traumatic way this can affect the grieving process. • Your relationship with the person who died: If you were cut off from the person who died or you had fallen out recently, this might make grieving more difficult. • Family conflicts: Any existing family conflict can make things difficult. If you had difficult relationships with parents or carers when you were young that can also have an effect. • Loss of a child: If your child has died you may be more likely to experience complicated or prolonged grief. • Previous bereavements and other losses: If you’ve experienced other deaths in your past, particularly at an early age, this can make complicated grief more likely. Some people can experience grief overload, from multiple bereavements or from other losses, eg of home or job, or through divorce. • Mental health conditions: If you have an existing mental health condition then this can make the grieving process more difficult.
Is there any UK government directive document, which all ombudsmen follow, or does each Ombudsman write its own?
11/09/2023
PHSO has a larger budget and larger staff now than at anytime in their history. In 2022-23 the PHSO recruited 111 new staff members, although only 52 were caseworkers. Please tell me what the other 59 do? It is strange to complain about the increase in workload while at the same time recruiting large numbers of people who will not address the increase. Even stranger to deny people with perceived low levels of injustice, any access to justice, blaming the heavy workload, while failing to recruit people to deal with the workload. Also please tell me does the PHSO intend to quote annual statistics on the same date though the years? Then we can compare these statistics more easily to understand what the PHSO is comparing. It does not seem to be comparing like with like.
Under the Information Act, can I also have a copy of your procedures on case management and handling.
I would like to make a request for the following information relating to the authority's current Multi-Functional Devices and printing/scanning services contract(s) 1. What services are included in the contract(s)? (e.g. printing vs scanning etc)? 2. Which supplier is delivering them? (If in-house, please confirm or if multiple provider please identify them)? 3. How many contracts does this entail and what's the award value for each? 4. When do these contracts expire and do they have any extensions? 5. What is the annual volumetric data (split by Annual Mono and Annual Colour print)? 6. What is the total number of devices supplied? 7. What Managed Print Service software solution do you use? 8. How many Mono MFDs and Colour MFDs do you have? 9. What document management solution do you use? 10. What High Volume printing devices do you use? 11. Were any framework agreements used to procure the goods/services? If so, which ones? 12. Any documentation you can provide me with, e.g. the order form? 13. What department is managing the contract and who's the decision-maker? 14. How many Adobe Acrobat (standard, professional and reader) licenses do you have? 15. What is the annual cost? 16. When is the renewal date? 17. Who is responsible for the contract? 18. Do you use any other PDF editing tools?
04/09/2023
Please could you provide the following documents: - Any other PHSO guidance relevant to the duty of candour
01/09/2023
Q.1) In the past, 5-to-10 years,how many many-years-out-of-time complaints to the PHSO-has the PHSO accepted on the grounds of 'special reasons' i.) of your answer in Q.1) above, what was/are the ethnicities, and disabilities of complainants that the PHSO accepted ? Q.2) From the past 5-to-10 years, of how many times, and/or in what circumstances,- has, or would, the PHSO recommended remedy by the DWP, WPPs, Employment Agencies, Court & Tribunal Services-pertaining to a complaint brought to the PHSO office's attention? i.) Of your answer to Q.1) above,-what are/were the ethnicities, and health condition/status, of the PHSO complainants?
31/08/2023
For each of the last five financial years, please provide your complaint outcome statistics - complaints received, upheld, partly upheld and not upheld - relating to complaints from people whose babies died or suffered harm at the following three NHS hospital trusts: Shrewsbury and Telford East Kent Nottingham
25/08/2023
A request for the following two PHSO policy documents: - Review and feedback policy/guidance - Unreasonable Behaviour Policy
please can you provide me with your full complaints procedure against the ombudsman So please can you provide me with directly the organisation I can complain to regarding your service you offer to me, as I wish to complain ASAP for your failing service. as I was insulted yesterday, but I stayed calm as I always do, that is me. Also can you provide me with how and who I can complain regarding decisions you have made regarding a complaint I have bought to you that a case worker has clearly got her decision wrong for me complaint.
24/08/2023
I wish to see the breakdown of complaints about the above 3 government bodies (Complaints about CAFCASS, the Ministry of Justice and HMCTS) for the years 2019,2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. i.e. Total amount of complaints, amount upheld, partially upheld and rejected.
Freedom of information request Can you confirm if any of the complaints that you have received about Charing Cross Hospital NHS in particular over the last year have been about : lack of duty of candour, breach of duty of care, fraud by misrepresentation ,falsifying of patient notes, discrimination or the hastening of their loved one death was caused by the refusal, failure to treat or a misdiagnosis.
21/08/2023
Under the FOI Act, please could you answer: 1. What is your email for submitting complaints about the PHSO service. To clarify, this is to submit a complaint about the PHSO itself, rather than a health/other government service. I found the feedback page on your website ( https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/about-us/feedback-about-our-service ), but it does not explain how to complain if you do not have a case handler assigned. If this is available online (for example on your website), by way of advice and assistance please could you provide these details.