Ombudsman sets new standards for health and social care complaints

The Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman (NIPSO) recently launched new standards for complaint handling for the health and social care sector in Northern Ireland.

The new Model Complaint Handling Procedures (MCHP) were launched on 1 July at an event in Parliament Buildings, Stormont, and brought together health and social care leaders, service providers, academics and public representatives. 

The new standards introduce a two-stage process for the management of complaints with a clear focus on listening, resolution, and learning. It is expected that with the right approach most complaints can be resolved by well trained staff at the point of service delivery within 5 days of receipt. For complaints that cannot be resolved the expectation is that an investigation and response will be completed within 20 working days.

The new standards require enhanced recording, reporting, and governance arrangements which will help to ensure transparency around the concerns that individuals raise and how they have been used to improve services.

At the launch, attendees heard about the experience of local councils in Northern Ireland which have been operating under new complaints standards for local government for over a year. They shared insights on how these new standards have helped improve complaint resolution, build public confidence, and identify opportunities for service improvement. 

The event also highlighted learning from Scotland, where public services have benefited from similar complaints handling arrangements for more than a decade. Professor Craig White, from the Scottish Government, emphasised the importance of a people centred approach, with a focus on meaningful patient communication and engagement, together with a cultural shift from blame to learning within health and social care organisations.

Introducing the new standards, Ombudsman Margaret Kelly explained that:

‘A number of inquiries and reports have highlighted the need for improved complaints handling in health and social care. A report commissioned by the Department of Health following the Home Truths report issued by the Commissioner for Older People recommended my office lead a complaints change program in health and social care. The new standards published today represent the start of this work.

Complaints represent an opportunity to innovate and improve the standard of health and social care and improve patient safety, and it is vital that patients and their families are listened to.’

Ms Kelly thanked the Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt, and his officials for their support in bringing the new standards forward and drew attention to the need for the support of all staff and managers in health and social care to use the standards as a way to bring about a change to people’s experiences in making a complaint. 

She also thanked staff across the health and social care system who have supported the development of the new standards.

Speaking at the launch, Minister Nesbitt said: 

‘I acknowledge the important work that NIPSO undertakes to investigate unresolved complaints that have been made about public bodies in Northern Ireland, and I welcome NIPSO’s programme of work to create common complaints handling standards for all bodies across the public sector. 

I am committed to improving the outcomes for individuals who wish to complain about health and social care services to ensure that service users, carers and their families’ voices are heard.  People need to know who to turn to when services are failing them and be assured that their complaints will be taken seriously and acted upon.

My Department is committed to continuing to work closely with NIPSO to strengthen and enhance the way complaints are managed across the sector, to improve the experience of those who make a complaint; and to ensure that learning from complaints is used to deliver real service improvements and reassurance to service users and their families or carers.’

The new standards become operational on 1 January 2026.

More information about the MCHP can be found on the Ombudsman’s website at www.nipso.org.uk.