Office closure 

Our office will be closed for the September weekend on Monday 15 September 2025.

You can still submit your complaint via our online form but this will not be processed until we reopen.

Can a community council complain to you?

We cannot accept complaints from community councils on their own behalf.  Section 5 of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Act 2002 defines a ‘member of the public’.  We took legal advice on this, and were advised that a community council is not a member of the public under the terms of the Act.   A Scottish Parliamentary committee has also looked at this and confirmed that a community council cannot complain directly to us.

So we do not accept complaints made directly by community councils, although they may act on behalf of a member of the public or help a person complain to us. In that case, we simply need the person's written consent for the community council to act on their behalf.

Updated: December 3, 2018