Decision Letter

A decision letter sets out the background to the complaint, the evidence that the reviewer has gathered and their analysis and conclusions.  It is a letter from the reviewer to you, although we also let the organisation you have complained about know about your complaint and the conclusion we have reached.  We may copy the letter to them.

We will usually issue a decision letter if:

• The organisation accept there were failings, apologise and take action to prevent the problem from happening again

• From the evidence, it appears that the organisation did not do anything wrong (to use formal language, there is no evidence of maladministration or service failure by the organisation)

• The Ombudsman has decided that the substance of the complaint and our decision on it do not raise public interest considerations

Some details and the outcome of your complaint may be used to inform others about our work and may, as a result, be published on our website.  This means that the media have access to decisions and may publicise them.  The information that we publish may name the organisation involved but not the person who made the complaint.  It will not name anyone else, unless there are very good reasons for doing so.  As far as possible the information we publish will not include details that might allow any individual to be identified. 

For information on Reports to Parliament visit this link.

Last updated on 13 May 2010