Issue

Complaint handling

5 stories · discussed at 4 council meetings · 7 councils

Councils are addressing rising complaint numbers, process issues, and high maladministration rates in complaint handling.

In September 2026, Kensington and Chelsea Council reported a 40% rise in complaints for 2025/26, partly due to a November 2025 cyber-attack and logging changes, with housing issues prominent. Lewisham Council's complaint handling was criticised for misclassifying service requests as formal complaints, inflating figures, according to its Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Merton Council's children's services also faced scrutiny in September 2026 over increased complaints in 2025/26 and issues with response times.

In July 2026, Lambeth Council was reported to have the highest rate of Housing Ombudsman maladministration determinations in London for 2024/25, with 92% of cases. Causes included issues with damp, mould, leaks, property damage, and repairs. The Camden Audit and Corporate Governance Committee discussed policies on complaints and remedies in September 2026.

Complaint handling refers to the process by which councils receive, investigate, and resolve complaints from residents. Kensington and Chelsea Council is also developing a public dashboard to track progress on Grenfell Inquiry commitments, including those related to resident voice, as updated in July 2026.

Key facts

  1. Kensington and Chelsea Council reported a 40% increase in complaints in 2025/26, totalling 3,973. Source
  2. Lewisham Council's complaint handling was criticised in September 2026 for misclassifying service requests. Source
  3. Merton Council's children's services logged 44 formal stage 1 complaints in 2025/26. Source
  4. Lambeth Council had a 92% maladministration rate for Housing Ombudsman determinations in 2024/25. Source
  5. Kensington and Chelsea Council is developing a public dashboard to track Grenfell Inquiry commitments. Source
About this summary

This summary was written automatically from our published stories and the council meeting records they draw on. It describes what councils have discussed and decided; it does not take a view on any decision. Each key fact links to the story it comes from. Updated 30 September 2026. Spotted a mistake? Email community@opencouncil.network.

Latest stories

  1. Complaints soar 40% after cyber attack, housing leads Complaints to Kensington and Chelsea Council have soared by 40% in the last year, with housing issues leading the surge. The annual complaints report for 2025/26 reveals a total... Kensington and Chelsea 24 September 2026
  2. Lewisham Council's Complaint Handling Criticised for Misclassification and Delays Lewisham Council's handling of complaints has been criticised, with a significant number of service requests being misclassified as formal complaints, inflating official figures... Lewisham 23 September 2026
  3. Merton Council Children's Services Faces Scrutiny Over Increased Complaints and Delayed Responses Merton Council's children's services is facing scrutiny over its handling of complaints, with a significant increase in the number of formal complaints received and a... Merton 5 September 2026
  4. Lambeth Council Leads London in Housing Ombudsman Maladministration Rates Lambeth Council has the highest rate of Housing Ombudsman determinations in London, with 92% of cases resulting in maladministration in 2024/25. This figure was revealed during... Lambeth 24 July 2026
  5. Grenfell Inquiry commitments progress, dashboard to be public Kensington and Chelsea Council is making progress on its commitments stemming from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, with a public-facing dashboard in development to track these... Kensington and Chelsea 10 July 2026