The Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Act 2019 (PSOW Act 2019) allows us to investigate complaints made by members of the public who believe they have suffered hardship or injustice through maladministration or service failure on the part of a body in our jurisdiction, which essentially includes all organisations that deliver public services devolved to Wales.
The ‘own initiative’ powers we have been granted under the Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Act 2019 (PSOW Act 2019) allow us to investigate where evidence suggests there may be systemic failings, even if service users themselves are not raising complaints.
The Act also established the Complaints Standards Authority (CSA) to drive improvement in public services by supporting effective complaint handling through model procedures, training and collecting and publishing complaints data.
