Guidance for Public Sector Bodies
Published on
Last updated on
Published on
Last updated on
Six Rules for Getting it Right - The Ombudsman’s Guide to Good Public Administration
"The purpose of this guide is to help service providers to provide a first-class service to their customers. The guide draws on my Office’s experience of examining complaints against the public service, and highlights the key elements of good public administration."
This guide sets out six basic rules:
1. Get it right
2. Be customer oriented
3 Be open and accountable
4. Act fairly and proportionately
5. Deal with errors effectively
6. Seek continuous improvement
In doing so, it:
The guide should be read in conjunction with Redress: Getting it wrong and putting it right.
Peter Tyndall
Ombudsman
These rules are not a checklist to be applied mechanically. Public bodies should use their judgement in applying the rules to produce reasonable, fair and proportionate results in each circumstance. The Ombudsman will adopt a similar approach in deciding whether maladministration or service failure, causing adverse effect, has occurred.
This can be achieved by:
(i) Acting in accordance with the law and with due regard for the rights of those concerned
(ii) Acting in accordance with the public body’s policy and guidance
(iii) Taking proper account of established good practice
(iv) Providing effective services, using appropriately trained and competent staff
(v) Making reasonable decisions, based on all relevant considerations
(vi) Avoiding undue delay
This can be achieved by:
(i) Ensuring people can access services easily, including those with a disability or special needs
(ii) Informing customers what they can expect and what the public body expects of them
(iii) Keeping to commitments, including any published service standards
(iv) Dealing with people helpfully, promptly and sensitively, bearing in mind their particular individual circumstances
(v) Responding to customers’ needs flexibly including, where appropriate, co-ordinating a response with other service providers
This can be achieved by:
(i) Being open and clear about policies and procedures, and ensuring that information and any advice provided is clear, accurate and complete
(ii) Stating the criteria for decision making and giving reasons for decisions
(iii) Handling information properly and appropriately
(iv) Keeping proper and appropriate records
(v) Taking responsibility for your actions
This can be achieved by:
(i) Treating people impartially, with respect and courtesy
(ii) Avoiding unfair discrimination or prejudice, and ensuring no conflict of interests
(iii) Dealing with people and issues objectively and consistently
(iv) Ensuring that decisions and actions are proportionate, appropriate and fair
(v) Ensuring that rules are applied equitably
This can be achieved by:
(i) Acknowledging mistakes and apologising where appropriate
(ii) Putting mistakes right quickly and effectively
(iii) Providing clear and timely information on how and when to appeal or complain
(iv) Operating an effective complaints procedure, which includes offering a fair and appropriate remedy when a complaint is upheld
This can be achieved by:
(i) Reviewing policies and procedures regularly to ensure they are effective
(ii) Asking for feedback and using it to improve services and performance
(iii) Ensuring that the public body learns lessons from complaints and uses these to improve services and performance
(iv) Identifying systemic problems and correcting them
(i) Acting in accordance with the law and with due regard for the rights of those concerned
Service providers should;
(ii) Acting in accordance with the Service providers policy and guidance
Service providers should;
(iii) Taking proper account of established good practice
Service providers should;
(iv) Providing effective services, using appropriately trained and competent staff
Service providers should;
(v) Taking reasonable decisions, based on all relevant considerations
Service providers should:
(vi) Avoiding undue delay
Service providers should avoid undue delay - particularly in cases where practical difficulties may arise for the individual as a result or where uncertainty may be created.
(i) Ensuring people can access services easily, including those with a disability or special needs
Service providers should;
(ii) Informing customers what they can expect and what the service providers expects of them
Service providers should;
(iii) Keeping to commitments, including any published service standards
Service providers should;
(iv) Dealing with people helpfully, promptly and sensitively, bearing in mind their particular individual circumstances
Service providers should;
(v) Responding to customers’ needs flexibly, including, where appropriate, co-ordinating a response with other service providers
Service providers should;
(i) Being open and clear about policies and procedures and ensuring that information, and any advice provided is clear, accurate and complete
Service providers should;
(ii) Stating the criteria for decision making and giving reasons for decisions
Service providers should be open and truthful when accounting for their decisions and actions
(iii) Handling information properly and appropriately
Service providers should;
(iv) Keeping proper and appropriate records
Service providers should;
(v) Taking responsibility for actions
Service providers should take responsibility for the administrative and business related actions of their staff.
(i) Treating people impartially, with respect and courtesy
Service providers should;
(ii) Avoiding unfair discrimination or prejudice, and ensuring no conflict of interest
Service providers should;
(iii) Dealing with people and issues objectively and consistently
Service providers should;
(iv) Ensuring that decisions and actions are proportionate, appropriate and fair
Service providers should;
(v) Ensuring that rules are applied equitably
Service providers should;
(i) Acknowledging mistakes and apologising where appropriate
Service providers should acknowledge when mistakes happen, apologise, explain what went wrong and put things right quickly and effectively.
(ii) Putting mistakes right quickly and effectively
Service providers should;
(iii) Providing clear and timely information on how and when to appeal or complain
Service providers should;
(iv) Operating an effective complaints procedure, which includes offering a fair and appropriate remedy when a complaint is upheld
Service providers should;
1. an explanation and apology from the public body to the complainant,
2. remedial action by the service provider,
3. financial compensation for the complainant, or
4. a combination of these.
The remedy offered should seek to put the complainant back in the position they would have been in if nothing had gone wrong. Where this is not possible , as will sometimes be the case, the remedy offered should fairly reflect the harm the complainant has suffered.
(i) Reviewing policies and procedures regularly to ensure they are effective
Service providers should review their policies and procedures regularly to ensure they are effective.
(ii) Asking for feedback and using it to improve services and performance
Service providers should actively seek and welcome all feedback, both compliments and complaints.
(iii) Ensuring that the public body learns lessons from complaints and uses these to improve services and performance
Service providers should use feedback to improve their public service delivery and performance. They should capture and review lessons learned from complaints so that they contribute to developing services. Service providers should also provide the necessary follow-up and guidance to staff where appropriate.
(iv) Identifying systemic problems and correcting them
Where systemic problems are identified, they should be corrected. Other public bodies who provide similar services and who would benefit from a similar correction should also be alerted.