When residents believe that their local council has made the wrong decision on an issue, or failed to adequately support them, a complaint can be lodged with the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO). The Ombudsman will investigate the complaint in those instances where it has the scope to do so, and will either dismiss or uphold the complaint depending on whether the authority acted correctly. You can find out more about what the LGO does here, along with specific examples of some of the most shocking cases.
These are the local authorities in England which had the most complaints against them upheld in the year 2019/2020.
5. Sheffield
34 of 38 complaints upheld, with the authority offering a satisfactory resolution in just five of these cases, or 15 per cent. Photo: (Photo: Shutterstock)
6. Cornwall
33 of 56 complaints upheld, with the authority offering a satisfactory resolution in just two of these cases, or six per cent. Photo: (Photo: Shutterstock)
7. Surrey
33 of 49 complaints upheld, with the authority offering a satisfactory resolution in just six of these cases, or 18 per cent. Photo: (Photo: Shutterstock)
8. Haringey
33 of 41 complaints upheld, with the authority offering a satisfactory resolution in just three of these cases, or nine per cent. Photo: (Photo: Shutterstock)