Our quarterly newsletter: January – May

It is hard to believe that 20 years have passed since we became the office of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales. Much has changed over the course of 20 years, and so it is an ideal opportunity for us to look back at our beginnings and see the progress that has been made since then.

To mark the year, we will be posting a series of social media posts focused on different areas of our service and history. We will be spotlighting important impacts, milestones and changes in our legislation that mean that we can do more to promote systemic improvement and facilitate access to our service.

In addition to raising awareness digitally among the general public, we will also be holding in-person events to engage with other key audiences.

On June 17, we will be attending gofod3, the biggest voluntary sector event of its kind in Wales. As a sponsor of the event, we are proud to support WCVA’s work to bring the voluntary sector together and create opportunities for shared learning, networking and real impact.

In addition to presence in the exhibition space, we will be holding a workshop on how closer partnerships with advice and advocacy organisations across Wales can drive real change in public services. We will discuss how our resources, guidance and services can help organisations  assist the public, and how sector insights can inform our investigations to deliver the greatest impact for vulnerable communities. You can register for our workshop here: Building voluntary sector partnerships to improve public services – gofod3.

We are also preparing for engagement with the new Members of the Senedd and their teams. We will be attending the Senedd Marketplace on 2 June, as well as  holding a breakfast briefing event with the Members on 6 October. We will be returning to the Senedd Marketplace on 18 November.

Over the past few months, we have been developing our next Strategic Plan, which will set the direction for our work from 2026 to 2029. Earlier in the year, we invited views on our draft proposals, and we would like to thank everyone who took the time to share feedback. We are grateful for all the feedback received, which helped us refine and strengthen the Plan, ensuring it reflects the issues that matter most to people and to public services in Wales.

At its heart, the Plan sets out how we will continue to deliver a fair, impartial and people‑centred service, while also using our powers more proactively to support learning and improvement across public services. It places greater emphasis on understanding and demonstrating the difference our work makes – not just for individual complainants, but for wider public service standards and democratic accountability in Wales.

The Plan also places strong emphasis on maintaining a resilient, well‑governed organisation that can adapt to changing demands while remaining independent, impartial and accountable.

We commit to four Strategic Aims:

Strategic Aim 1: Deliver justice with positive impact for people of Wales

We deliver an empathetic, proportionate and efficient service that leaves people feeling heard and understood. Our recommendations are reasonable, consistent and effective.

Strategic Aim 2: Influence positive change in public services and high standards of conduct in local government

We systematically improve public services through our Complaints Standards work, own initiative investigations and public interest and thematic reports. We identify good practice and lessons learnt, communicating these effectively to contribute to improvement of public services. We support high standards of conduct amongst councillors.

Strategic Aim 3: Strengthen access and impact for those who need our service the most 

We continue to improve access to our service. We promote our service to those who may need it the most, including through key organisations and stakeholders that advise, support and represent complainants. We ensure that we focus our efforts on issues affecting most vulnerable groups.

Strategic Aim 4: Ensure that we are a resilient, agile and accountable organisation

We maintain and improve efficient and effective staff, finance, and IT resources, and ensure good governance, accountability and transparency.

Read our Plan here.

Read the Easy Read version of our Plan here.

Between January and March, we have published 2 public interest reports. See the summaries of these below:

Case reference 202403251 – Hywel Dda University Health Board

Mrs C complained about whether the standard of care provided to her mother, Mrs B, for the management of her cataract (when the lens in the eye develops a cloudy patch) to her right eye was clinically appropriate and timely.

The investigation found that the Health Board failed to respond appropriately to advice it requested from a Second Health Board regarding Mrs B’s care.

During the COVID‑19 pandemic, the Health Board did not demonstrate that it considered contemporaneous public health guidance when assessing the risks to Mrs B.

When routine services resumed, the subsequent clinical review of Mrs B was inadequate. Relevant tests were not undertaken, a letter to her GP about medication lacked sufficient detail, and an opportunity to refer her for further treatment at an earlier stage was missed.

Mrs B also experienced numerous cancelled clinic appointments during the period under investigation, which contributed to delays in diagnosis and treatment.

Mrs B, who is blind in her left eye, is now also significantly sight impaired in her right eye.  Mrs C has described the devastating impact this has had on both Mrs B and her wider family.

We recommended that the Health Board should provide a formal apology to Mrs B and Mrs C, as well as a payment of £4,500 to reflect the failings in care, plus £300 for the time and trouble involved in pursuing the complaint. We also recommended that the Health Board reminds clinicians about the importance of reviewing previous clinical correspondence, particularly where patients have been lost to follow‑up, and of making timely referrals for specialist care.

Read the full report here.

Case reference 202404388 – Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board

Mr C complained about the care and treatment he received between September 2023 and July 2024 following his prostate cancer diagnosis.  In particular, we considered the significance of the delays in Mr C receiving a PSMA PET scan – an advanced imaging test that uses a radioactive tracer to identify and visualise prostate cancer cells.  We also considered the delay in Mr C receiving hormonal therapy, and the impact this had on the spread of the cancer.

We found that, whilst the care and treatment Mr C received overall followed the NHS Wales National Pathway for Prostate Cancer, there were significant delays at key stages.  As a result, Mr C waited more than three times longer than he should have before his treatment began.

The investigation also examined whether Mr C should have received hormonal therapy sooner. It found that it was clinically appropriate not to start hormonal therapy before the PSMA PET scan was known, as this could have affected interpretation of the scan. However, because the scan itself was significantly delayed, Mr C’s hormonal therapy was also delayed unnecessarily. This was an injustice for Mr C, leaving him waiting more than 180 days from the point of suspicion to definitive treatment.

We recommended that the Health Board apologises to Mr C for the delays and the injustice caused, to share the report with the clinicians involved in Mr C’s care so the findings can be considered and discussed, and to provide feedback to us on any improvements identified.

Read the full report here.

As we do in the case of all public service complaints that we intervene in, we have been actively monitoring how organisations have been complying with recommendations from our own initiative investigations.

In October 2024, we concluded four separate investigations which looked into carers’ needs assessments in Wales.

We considered whether 4 local authorities – Caerphilly County Borough Council, Ceredigion County Council, Flintshire County Council and Neath Port Talbot Council – undertook carers’ assessments in line with their statutory obligations.

While we identified some areas of good practice, we also made several recommendations including to:

• improve recording practices
• improve how information is shared with carers
• offer staff refresher training on carers’ rights; and
• collaborate better with the healthcare sector.

We have monitored the investigated authorities’ compliance with the recommendations and in March 2026 we published a follow-up report.

We found that all 4 of the investigated authorities had taken positive action since the investigation, although only Caerphilly County Borough Council and Neath Port Talbot Council had fully implemented all of the recommendations that were made. We made further recommendations to Ceredigion County Council and Flintshire County Council and urged these authorities to continue to make the necessary changes to comply with the remaining recommendations.

We also welcomed comments and data from other authorities across Wales, in response to our investigation, demonstrating wider impact and learning.  However, it remains that all local authorities in Wales need to continue to focus on ensuring carers are informed of their rights and can access appropriate information, advice or support to enable them to continue in their caring role, if they so wish.

Read the full report here.

In February, following a public consultation launched in November 2025, we announced our decision to progress proposals for two own initiative investigations into how social housing providers respond to reports of disrepair, with a particular focus on damp and mould affecting vulnerable tenants.

In our own casework and recent investigations, we have identified delays and inconsistent responses to reports of disrepair, damp and mould, often involving vulnerable tenants. In 2024–25, just over 19% of new complaints received related to social housing, many concerning disrepair, damp and mould. We have also published a thematic report, Living in Disrepair, and issued public interest investigation reports in late 2025 highlighting similar concerns.

As these issues have become more prevalent in our casework, we published a special edition of our newsletter in February where we highlighted the housing complaints we have intervened in and their recurring themes in order to provide clear opportunities for improvements across the housing sector.

Evidence from the consultation indicated vulnerable tenants may be disproportionately affected, including disabled people, older people, families with children, those on low incomes and people from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Respondents described the serious impact that unresolved disrepair, damp and mould can have on health, wellbeing and independence, and agreed that progressing these investigations would be in the public interest.

Two own initiative investigations into these issues are currently ongoing.

In addition to these, we are also currently undertaking 3 own initiative investigations into 2 Health Boards.

Four hearings have been held since January. We include the summaries below:

Case references 202303825, 202306824, 202307937

We investigated complaints about a Member of Neyland Town Council. The allegations were that the Member repeatedly spoke to and treated the Council’s Clerk and fellow councillors in a disrespectful way, and that their behaviour amounted to bullying and harassment. It was also alleged that their conduct damaged the reputation of the Council and that they failed to cooperate properly with our investigation.

Our investigation found evidence suggesting that the Member had not treated the Clerk or other councillors with respect, had bullied or harassed them on several occasions, had brought their role and the Council into disrepute through their actions, and had failed to comply with requests made during the investigation.

The case was referred to the Adjudication Panel for Wales (“the APW”). After considering the evidence, the APW found that the Member had:

• failed on multiple occasions to treat the Clerk and fellow councillors with respect and consideration;
• engaged in behaviour, including specific incidents and correspondence, that       amounted to bullying and harassment;
• acted in a way that brought their office and the Council into disrepute; and
• failed to comply with requests made during the investigation.

The APW decided that the appropriate sanction was to disqualify the Member from acting as a member of any relevant authority for four years.

Case references 202302731, 202304678, 202306825, 202307936

We investigated complaints about a Former Member of Neyland Town Council. It was alleged that the Former Member failed to treat the Clerk, the Former Clerk and fellow councillors with respect, that they bullied and harassed them, and made malicious and vexatious statements about councillors and the Former Clerk in public.

Our investigation found evidence suggesting that the Former Member’s behaviour fell below the standards expected of elected members, including bullying and harassment, making malicious complaints, and acting in a way that could reasonably be seen as damaging the reputation of the Council.

The matter was referred to the Adjudication Panel for Wales (“the APW”). The APW found that, across a number of separate incidents, the Former Member had:

• failed to treat others with respect and consideration;
• bullied and harassed others;
• made malicious, frivolous or vexatious complaints; and
• conducted himself in a way that brought their office and the Council into disrepute.

The APW decided that the appropriate sanction was to disqualify the Former Member from acting as a member of any relevant authority for three years.

Case reference 202407222

We received a complaint that a Member of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council had breached the Code of Conduct.

It was alleged that the Member had sent an email to a Council employee that was disrespectful and bullying in tone. It was also alleged that the Member refused to engage with Council staff to discuss concerns about their behaviour. Following this, the Member was alleged to have victimised the employee by making a complaint of gross misconduct against them, in retaliation for concerns being raised with the Ombudsman.

Our investigation found evidence suggesting that this pattern of behaviour involved disrespectful conduct, bullying and harassment, and the making of a retaliatory complaint.

The case was referred to the Council’s Standards Committee, which found that the Member had failed to comply with the Code of Conduct. The Committee decided that the appropriate sanction was a censure.

Case reference 202404421

We received a complaint that a Member of Newport City Council had breached the Code of Conduct.

It was alleged that, during a telephone call with the Council’s Customer Contact Centre, the Member made discriminatory comments to a Council employee about the way the call was being handled.

Our investigation found that the Member’s behaviour fell below the standards expected of elected members, including a failure to treat the employee with dignity and respect. We concluded on balance that the behaviour did not suggest that the Member had brought their office into disrepute.

The case was referred to Newport City Council’s Standards Committee. After considering the matter, the Committee found that the Member had:

• failed to treat a Council employee with respect and consideration;
• made inappropriate and discriminatory comments; and
• acted in a way that brought their office into disrepute.

The Committee decided that the appropriate sanction was a censure.

This decision is subject to appeal.

Our CSA team have been continuing their work with housing associations to formally bring them under the Complaints Standards Authority. We now have 23 Housing Associations operating under the Standards and the remaining 9 associations are now within their 6 month trigger period. This requires them to review their policies, ensure their data collection is appropriate and receive relevant training.

We are very grateful to all organisations who have worked with us over the past 12 months to achieve this and we look forward to continuing with all those under the Standards, which also includes all local authorities and Health Boards & Trusts, to provide the public with consistent complaint services across Wales.

We are continuing to plan the next stage of the roll out Complaints Standards to other key public service sectors during 2026 and beyond.