Annual complaints and service improvement report for the Housing Management service

Learn more about complaints and service improvement in Housing Management.

A total of 775 stage 1 complaints were received from 2023 to 2024. 55% were either upheld or partially upheld.

83% of stage 1 complaints were responded to within the target of 10 working days.

13% of stage 1 complaints were escalated to stage 2. 49% were responded to within the target of 20 working days.

The top 3 areas of complaint from 2023 to 2024 were:

  • the condition of property (repairs, maintenance and improvement) (82%)
  • anti-social behaviour (3.4%)
  • staff conduct (2.8%)

The Housing Ombudsman findings for 2022 to 2023 show that:

  • in 20% of cases, investigated maladministration was found, 12% better than the national average
  • in 13% of cases, a service failure was found, 11% better than the national average

Service improvements

We have made several service improvements through learning from the complaints we received, including: 

  • improving clarity for leaseholders through a review and revision of internal processes relating to formal leaseholder consultation requirements
  • improving understanding for our residents by providing clearer policies and procedures relating to pet ownership
  • formalising a more holistic approach to debt management for vulnerable tenants within our reviewed and updated rent arrears policy
  • ensuring we're prioritising people with known vulnerabilities through changes to our contractor’s processes, including a daily review of cases marked as having no heating or hot water
  • clarifying the anti-social behaviour case review documents and procedures for our residents to ensure a more robust, responsive and accessible service
  • improving fire safety through a review of mobility scooter storage at all properties with a particular focus on seniors housing schemes
  • improving living conditions for tenants by increasing service capacity to tackle damp and mould

The report was considered by the council’s cabinet, see the agenda and minutes for further performance information.

Brighton & Hove City Council welcomes the Housing Ombudsman’s new statutory Complaint Handling Code, especially the oversight requirements, which ensure that complaint handling is given high priority in the organisation and provides a robust framework for continuous improvement using learning from complaints.

We're pleased to see that the organisation’s performance in 2022 to 2023 was considerably better than the national average for similar landlords and hope to build on this in the coming years.

Where there are areas for improvement, we're committed to taking action to ensure that residents receive higher standards of service in the future.
- Councillor Gill Williams