Local Council Complaints

The LGSCO can investigate complaints about a wide range of council and public body services in England:

• Housing: Housing allocations, homelessness decisions, repairs to council properties, anti-social behaviour handling
• Planning: Planning application handling, enforcement delays, development plan issues
• Social care: Adult social care assessments, care packages, charging for care, children's services
• Benefits: Council tax reduction, local welfare assistance schemes
• Education: Special educational needs (SEND), school admissions, exclusions
• Highways: Road maintenance, pavement repairs, parking enforcement
• Environmental health: Noise complaints, pest control, food hygiene

Some decisions, such as planning refusals, have separate statutory appeal routes and may not be appropriate for the LGSCO. However, the process by which a decision was made — for example, if the council failed to follow its own procedures — can be investigated.

Most councils operate a two-stage formal complaints process:

• Stage 1: Your complaint is reviewed by a manager in the relevant department. Most councils aim to respond within 15–20 working days. You should receive a written acknowledgement and a final response at this stage.
• Stage 2: If you are unhappy with the Stage 1 response, you can request a review. This is typically carried out by a senior manager or complaints officer. The council aims to respond within 20–25 working days at this stage.

Once you have completed both stages and remain unhappy, you can refer your complaint to the LGSCO. You must have exhausted the council's own complaints process before the LGSCO will investigate.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigates complaints about councils, combined authorities, and some other public bodies in England. The service is free to use.

You can refer a complaint to the LGSCO online at lgo.org.uk, by phone on 0300 061 0614, or in writing. You will need to provide:

• Details of the council and the service involved
• A summary of your complaint and its impact
• Evidence of the council's responses at both stages of its complaints process
• What outcome you are seeking

The LGSCO decides whether to investigate based on the information provided. It assesses whether the council caused an injustice through maladministration — broadly meaning poor administration, failure to follow proper procedures, or unreasonable decisions.

Where the LGSCO upholds a complaint, it typically recommends a remedy such as a financial payment, an apology, or a change in the council's procedures.

Some council decisions must be challenged through statutory appeal routes rather than the complaints process:

• Council tax liability: Appeal to the Valuation Tribunal for England if you disagree with the council's decision on a council tax liability, discount, or exemption.
• Planning decisions: Appeal to the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) if your planning application is refused or granted with conditions you dispute.
• Housing benefit: Appeal to the independent First-tier Tribunal if you disagree with a housing benefit decision.
• SEND: Appeal to the SEND Tribunal for decisions about education, health and care (EHC) plans.

If you use the complaints process for a matter that has a statutory appeal route, the LGSCO may not investigate the substance of the decision — but it can still investigate how the council handled your complaint.