Friday 16 October - Sunday 18 October: Complaint form offline

The supplier of our case management system has confirmed that they are experiencing a significant technical issue.

At present, we have no access to the case management system and we are currently unable to take new Public Service Complaints or provide updates on cases. We are planning on the basis that this could continue for a period of time including next week.

Please be assured we are doing all we can and will provide updates on our website.

For an all service update: Service update | SPSO

Ombudsman's findings - February 2026

This month we published decision reports from 12 complaints investigated by the Ombudsman.

Sector breakdown:

  • Health: 7
  • Health and Social Care: 2
  • Housing Associations: 1
  • Local Government: 1
  • Prisons: 1

Outcomes:

  • Fully upheld: 4
  • Some upheld: 1
  • Not upheld: 6
  • Resolved: 1

We made 12 recommendations to public bodies.

Two of this month’s health cases highlighted the importance of clear communication, particularly around diagnosis and managing expectations.

In one case, a patient was unsure of their diagnostic pathway and did not understand the likelihood of cancer. Their understanding was not checked until the point of diagnosis.

We asked the board to apologise and ensure that communication is in line with General Medical Council guidance.

In another case, we found a lack of clarity around the expected timescales for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) assessment, and the family may have been unintentionally given the impression that an ASD diagnosis was likely or expected.

We asked the board to apologise and ensure that communication around diagnostic uncertainty minimises the likelihood of families forming premature expectations about specific diagnoses.

Read all our published decision reports on our website.

Updated: February 18, 2026