Council told to pay compensation over 2-year delay resolving complaint

Shropshire Council has been told to pay compensation after failing to resolve a resident’s complaint for nearly two years.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said the council was at fault over the delay and ordered it to resolve the matter within a month.

The council has accepted the ombudsman’s recommendations.

The investigation report says a man, named as Mr X, made a stage two complaint to the authority in May 2021 and an investigating officer was appointed that July. The complaint involved children’s services.

In February 2022, Mr X’s mother also lodged a complaint and this was linked to Mr X’s case, with the intention that the investigation would address both.

When the council failed to conclude the investigation nearly two years later, Mr X took the matter to the ombudsman.

The ombudsman’s report says that if the original complaint was investigated by the ombudsman, “it is likely we would find fault on the council’s part”.

The ombudsman says therefore that the council is “causing injustice to Mr X and Mrs X by delaying the resolution of their complaints”.

The ombudsman ordered the council to resolve the complain within one month, and pay £500 compensation to Mr X and £250 to his mother.

Shropshire Council was asked to comment.