MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL

COUNCIL

22 JUNE 2011

REPORT OF THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE HELD ON 8 JUNE 2011

ANNUAL REVIEW OF COMPLAINTS 2010/11

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Change and Scrutiny reviewing the Council’s performance in dealing with complaints during the period 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011.  It was noted that a further report detailing the results of the Local Government Ombudsman’s annual review of the complaints his office had dealt with about the Council during the year ended 31 March 2011 would be submitted to the Committee at a later date.  In response to a suggestion that, to be meaningful, the report should have included data to enable a comparison to be made of trends year on year, the Officers explained that this information could be included, but it was unlikely that the same type of complaints would be made at the same time each year, and the quarterly monitoring reports had not identified any trends.

Subject to a number of numerical discrepancies in the report and Appendix A being investigated and corrected, the Committee expressed its satisfaction with the Council’s performance in dealing with complaints over this period.

A copy of the report, as amended, is attached as an Appendix to this report.

RECOMMENDED:   That the issues outlined in the review of complaints 2010/11 be noted and endorsed.