Ombudsman Slams Bolton Council Complaint Handling 2026

Key Points

• The ombudsman for Local Government and Social Care is critical of Bolton Council’s complaint management during 2025/2026.
• According to the ombudsman, “there has been a further decline this year in the council’s complaint management performance”.
• There were six late responses to inquiries from the ombudsman, three of which relate to the provision of environmental services.
• In two cases, the delays were severe and resulted in the ombudsman considering the need to issue a witness summons in order to gather information.
• According to the ombudsman, the council requested an extension when failing to meet the initial deadline, but then failed to meet the revised deadline.
• Seven compliance outcomes were noted during the period under review, out of which six cases were delayed.
• The delays affected personal remedies such as apology and payment, according to the ombudsman.
• The ombudsman asked the council to provide timely responses to information requests and manage recommendations properly.
• The council responded that it has formed a new corporate complaints team and is going to achieve “measurable improvements”.
• This was reported at the council’s standards committee in September, according to the authority.

Bolton (Manchester Mirror) October 07, 2026 — It has been criticised by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman after its annual performance assessment for 2025/26 found a further deterioration in the authority’s handling of complaints.

The ombudsman’s assessment, addressed to Bolton Council chief executive Sue Johnson, said the council’s complaint-handling performance had declined following concerns raised the previous year. As reported by the Manchester Evening News, the letter stated:

“Last year, I raised concerns regarding your council’s complaint handling performance, making it disappointing to see a further decline this year.”

The ombudsman said responses to six of its inquiries were late. Three of those delayed responses related to environmental services, according to the assessment.

What did the ombudsman say about missed deadlines?

The report said that, in one case, Bolton Council requested an extension only after the original deadline had already passed. Although the ombudsman agreed to the extension, the council then failed to meet the new date as well.

“In one instance, the council sought an extension only after the initial deadline had elapsed,” the ombudsman’s letter said. “Although we consented to this, it subsequently failed to meet that new date as well.”

The assessment also said that, in two instances, delays in providing information were significant enough for the ombudsman service to consider the “unusual” step of threatening to issue a witness summons before it received the required material.

The ombudsman did not say that a summons was ultimately issued. However, the report made clear that the service had considered legal action because the council had not supplied vital information within the expected timeframe.

How did delayed compliance affect complainants?

The ombudsman recorded seven compliance outcomes during 2025/26. It said delays occurred in six of those cases.

“In most situations, these delays impacted personal remedies such as apologies and payments, leading to unnecessary waiting and increased frustration for those who filed complaints,” the ombudsman said.

The assessment added that such actions “should be straightforward to execute”.

The criticism relates not only to the council’s initial responses to complaints, but also to its implementation of remedies agreed after investigations. The ombudsman said delayed compliance meant people waiting for apologies or payments faced further avoidable delay and frustration.

What action has the ombudsman requested?

The ombudsman urged Bolton Council to ensure that it responds promptly to requests for information and provides effective oversight of agreed recommendations.

The report called on the authority to make sure recommendations are fulfilled “without delay”.

The ombudsman’s concerns centred on two linked issues: the council’s ability to provide information during investigations, and its ability to carry out agreed remedies once cases have been concluded.

How has Bolton Council responded?

Bolton Council said the matter had been presented to its standards committee in September, where it set out the steps being taken to address the ombudsman’s concerns.

A council spokesperson said: “We fully acknowledge the significance of efficient complaint handling as a vital component of good governance, accountability, and service enhancement.”

The authority said it had invested in a new corporate complaints team. According to the council, the team will work with operational services to coordinate complaint handling, improve the quality of responses and increase compliance with both the ombudsman’s requirements and the complaint-handling code.

“To facilitate this, the council has invested in establishing a new corporate complaints team that will collaborate with operational services to coordinate complaint handling, enhance, improve quality of and responses and ensure increased compliance with both the Ombudsman’s requirements and the complaint handling code,”

the spokesperson said.

The council added:

“We are committed to learning from the identified issues and delivering measurable improvements over the upcoming year.”

What does the report mean for Bolton residents?

For residents who raise complaints with Bolton Council, the ombudsman’s findings highlight the importance of timely responses and the prompt delivery of agreed remedies.

The report does not identify individual complainants or disclose the details of individual cases. However, it states that delays in compliance affected remedies including apologies and payments.

The ombudsman’s role is to investigate complaints about councils and other local public bodies in England. Its annual assessment examines how authorities respond to inquiries, implement recommendations and comply with its decisions.

Background of the development

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman is an independent public body that investigates complaints about councils, social care providers and other local organisations in England. Its annual assessments are intended to give councils feedback on how they have responded to investigations and whether they have complied with recommended remedies.

In Bolton Council’s case, the ombudsman said it had raised concerns about complaint handling in the previous year. The 2025/26 assessment found that those concerns had not improved, with the service recording a further decline in performance.

The council has said it has created a new corporate complaints team to coordinate work across departments and improve the quality and timeliness of responses. It has also said the issue was considered by its standards committee in September.

Prediction: How could this affect Bolton residents?

The development could lead Bolton residents to expect closer scrutiny of how the council manages complaints, particularly where ombudsman investigations require information or where remedies such as apologies and payments have been agreed.

If the council’s new corporate complaints team improves coordination between departments, residents may see faster responses and more consistent handling of cases. The council has said its aim is to improve compliance with the ombudsman’s requirements and the complaint-handling code.

However, the ombudsman’s findings indicate that the immediate issue is not simply the number of complaints received, but the council’s ability to meet deadlines and carry out agreed actions without delay. For residents, the practical effect of any improvement will depend on whether future ombudsman assessments show fewer late responses, fewer compliance delays and quicker delivery of remedies.