What happens to my complaint?

We will consider your complaint to see whether it should be investigated. See How the SPSO considers complaints for more information. If we decide not to take it up we will tell you why. If we decide to investigate your complaint we will write to you and the organisation about which you are complaining to explain what we are investigating. 

At the end of the investigation the results will be set out in a report.  We will send you a draft of the report to give you a chance to comment on how your evidence is used. 

The final report will be sent to you, the organisation about which you complained and Scottish Ministers.  A copy will also be laid before the Scottish Parliament.  At this point it becomes a public document and will be available on our website.  (You can read investigation reports we have issued in the Reports section of the website.)

If we find that a complaint is justified we usually make recommendations about what should be done to put things right.  This may be an apology or an explanation or other appropriate action.  See can you get me compensation? for more information.