The PSOW acts …

I know it may seem like I have a bit of a downer on the PSOW (see past blogs).  It’s not because I don’t think it’s a really important institution – indeed, quite the opposite.  I think it’s a vital part of the make-up of housing; and, as important, housing rights and their enforcement.  The PSOW has the power to do amazing things which will impact on the life chances and lives of all residents.  That’s so much more than a law case or a lawyer or anything else can do.

That is because Ombuds generally have the power to conduct proactive investigations of services offered by landlords or a landlord, alongside what might be termed their “small claims” role.  These can be complex and contentious, particularly when they single out individual landlords, or raise issues which are beyond the scope of landlord services.  There is quite a lot of research on these institutions.  Not wishing to big myself up, but I have an interest in this area, and a paper going to come out at some point next year on the stigmatisation of social landlords through these processes.  But, of interest, HM Treasury announced a review of the Financial Ombudsman Service earlier this year citing concerns about it becoming a quasi regulator, which is what (arguably) Ombuds are doing in this proactive role (I have another paper under review about that issue).

Anyway, this blog is not supposed to be a self-publicity arena, but to discuss what is going on in Wales.  And, following last week’s pretty scathing reports on Trivallis (about which I was also pretty critical – the reports, I mean), the PSOW has launched a consultation on whether to conduct an “own initiative” investigation into whether social landlords “are appropriately responding to reports and concerns relating to disrepair, with a focus on damp and mould, taking into consideration the needs of vulnerable tenants”.  The web address for the consultation is here.

There surely can be only one answer to this.  The Consultation closes on 8th December.  The numerical basis for the consultation appears slight – 79 early interventions in 2024-5 and four reports – but the real basis (to me) is the effects these issues have on already vulnerable housed populations.  You can reply as follows (copied from the website):

• Complete our online form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DJGGZYT
• Email your response to OwnInitiative@ombudsman.wales
• Call us on 0300 790 0203 and ask to speak to the Own Initiative Lead Officer.
• Post your response to:

Public Services Ombudsman for Wales

1 Ffordd yr Hen Gae, Pencoed, CF35 5LJ

Here are some handpicked interesting publications about Ombuds:

Creutzfeldt, N., and Bradford, B., 2016. Dispute Resolution Outside of Courts: Procedural Justice and Decision Acceptance Among Users of Ombuds Services in the UK. Law & Society Review 50(4): 985–1016. doi: 10.1111/lasr.12234.

Gilad, S., 2008. Accountability or Expectations Management? The Role of the Ombudsman in Financial Regulation. Law & Policy, 30(2):227–53. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9930.2008.00275.x.

Gill, C., and Creutzfeldt, N., 2018. The Ombuds Watchers: Collective Dissent and Legal Protest Among Users of Public Services Ombuds. Social & Legal Studies 27(3): 367–88.

Hertogh, M., 2013. Why the Ombudsman Does Not Promote Public Trust in Government: Lessons from the Low Countries. Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law 35(2): 245–58. doi: 10.1080/09649069.2013.800291.

McBurnie, G., Williams, J., and Coulter-Smith, M., 2023. The Response from Scottish Health Boards to Complaint Investigations by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman: A Qualitative Case-Study. International Journal of Law in Context, 19(3): 407–26. doi: 10.1017/S1744552323000149.

Thomas, R. 2023. The English local government and social care ombudsman: Systemic administrative justice and bureaucratisation (Part II). Public Law: 424-47.