To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 12 November 2025 (enclosed).

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 November 2025 as circulated, were approved and signed as a correct record.

To consider the report of the ??Business Systems & Information Manager? (enclosed).

Considered – report of the Business Systems & Information Manager.

The following key points were made by the Officer during their presentation:

·         Prior to a formal complaint process, the Council will aim to resolve any issues to an individual’s satisfaction before they become a complaint if they can be dealt with quickly and efficiently by the relevant service area, known as ‘Informal Service Level Complaints’. These issues are not recorded or monitored by the Council’s Information Governance team.

·         In February 2024, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) published a Complaint Handling Code for Council’s. Although the LGSCO consider the code to be ‘best practice’ and ‘important advice and guidance’ it is not a statutory requirement for Councils to adhere to.

·         When reviewing the ‘Complaints Code’ after its publication, Blaby District Council found that the current Policy and procedures already met most of the advice and recommendations outlined in the code. However, the Council has identified some ways in which it can improve and comply further with the LGSCO Complaints Code.

·         Categorisation of complaints:

o   Service Level / Stage 0 Complaint (typically sent directly to service areas and not formally recorded or monitored).

o   Formal Stage 1 Complaint.

o   Formal Stage 2 Complaint (an escalation from Stage 1).

o   An Ombudsman Investigated Complaint (typically escalated from a Stage 2 complaint).

·         Complaint Volumes – Stage 1 and Stage 2 (2025 calendar year)

o   109 stage 1 complaints were recorded.

o   22 complaints were escalated to Stage 2.

·         Formal complaint volumes by service area, the top 3 being:        

o   Refuse, Recycling and District Cleansing

o   Council Tax and Benefits

o   Planning and Development

·         Formal complaint outcomes – where upon the investigation of a formal complaint and as part of the final response, the responding officer is required to state one of the following outcomes:

o   Complaint Upheld – Where the Council take full responsibility for service failures outlined by the complainant.

o   Complaint Partly Upheld - Where the Council takes partial responsibility for service failures outlined by the complainant.

o   Complaint Not Upheld – Where the Council does not accept responsibility for service failures outlined by the complainant.

·         It was noted that in 2025, 63 complaints were not upheld, 37 were partly upheld and 27 complaints were upheld.

·         The type or nature of complaints received can vary significantly. However, to enable improved analysis and improvement, the Council groups complaints into 7 categories:

o   Failure to provide a service at the level or standard agreed.

o   Neglect or delay in answering a query or responding to a request for service.

o   Unhelpful attitude of a Council employee.

o   Failure to follow Council Policy or Procedure.

o   Failure to consider relevant issues when making a decision.

o   Data Protection Issues.

o   Other

·         The top three complaints were categorised as:

o   Failure to provide a service at the level or standard agreed.

o   Other

o   Neglect or delay in answering a query or responding to a request for service.

·         Complaints handled by LGSCO – 1  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

To consider the report of the Senior Democratic Services & Scrutiny Officer (enclosed).

Considered – report of the Senior Democratic Services & Scrutiny Officer.

Members accepted the 25/26 Scrutiny Work Programme.

The Senior Democratic Services & Scrutiny Officer provided the following update and encouraged all Members to attend a session:

·         10 March – Review of Member Champions

·         25 March - HR Phase 2

No items were raised for further information or examination.

There were no further actions arising from the meeting.