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Issue:- 30 August  2012

Ombudsman complaints fall to new low

THE number of complaints made about Liverpool City Council to the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) has fallen to a new low.  In her annual letter to the city council, Anne Seex reveals there were 138 enquiries in 2011/12. This is down from 171 the previous year, and compares to 228 in 2005/6.  She investigated 66 cases - compared to 71 in 2010/11 which is down from a high of 213 in 2005/6.

The data shows Liverpool has the joint lowest number of investigations per 100,000 population among the big 'core' cities, at just 14.  Of the 66 cases investigated, a total of just 19 were deemed to need remedying - compared to 71 in 2005/6.

There was only one case of maladministration, in April 2011, when the council paid compensation to a disabled service user for delays in installing a shower. Since then, a review has taken place, new safeguarding procedures have been introduced, a new contract has been awarded for domiciliary care and more stringent compliance procedures are in place. Complaints about this service have dropped by almost 80 percent since 2007/8.

Deputy Mayor, Councillor Paul Brant, said:- "We are a big organisation providing services to every single resident and when we get things wrong we are committed to investigating and putting things right.  It is reassuring that the overall trend of referrals to the Local Government Ombudsman is continuing to come down. I think that is because we have a well established procedure for investigating complaints and when we reach a judgement it is fair.  But we are not complacent and are absolutely determined to make sure we do our utmost to provide a good quality of service which people are satisfied with, and learn lessons when things go wrong."

The council's record in responding to LGO enquiries is also the best among the big 'core' cities at 18.2 days, compared to 28.7 in Sheffield, 33.4 in Bristol and 30.8 in Manchester.

The council dealt with 4,332 complaints during 2011/12, down from 4,705 in 2010/11. The figures show that 98 percent were resolved through the Have Your Say procedure and only two percent ended up being referred to the LGO
.

£10.7m fundraising target for Southport residents

A cancer charity is appealing for 150 people in Southport to help it raise over £10.7m - by drinking coffee and eating cake.  Last year 100 people hosted coffee mornings, raising a total of around £19,000. Howvever, Macmillan Cancer Support wants this year's World's Biggest Coffee Morning to be the biggest ever.  The charity is hoping more coffee mornings will take place across the Ormskirk area, to raise a total of £25,000.  Across the UK Macmillan hopes to raise a massive £10.7m from the event, beating its £10m total from last year.

One of Macmillan's fundraising managers for the Merseyside area, Grace Higgins, said:- "Last year we raised a record-breaking amount of money form the World's Biggest Coffee Morning and we really hope we can repeat that again this year.  I think it's a mark of how much people love this event that every year it gets bigger and bigger. People can be so busy, that catching up with friends, workmates or even family can be difficult.  This event gives them a reason to make time for each other while also doing something really valuable for people with cancer and their families."

The money raised from the World's Biggest Coffee Morning is used to fund services such as the cancer information and advice centre in Southport at the Community Service Station.  While the event has traditionally involved people having straightforward coffee mornings, people in Southport have expanded the event to include wine-tastings and quiz nights.  Fundraiser Grace Higgins believes the flexibility of the event is another reason it's so successful.  She said:- "We give all our hosts a fundraising pack and lots of ideas but whether they choose to have a coffee morning on the official event day, a cocktail evening at the weekend or a quiz event the week after is up to them.  All we want is for people to do something they enjoy with people they want to spend time with while raising some money for Macmillan. Sadly the number of people being diagnosed with cancer is increasing every year and that means Macmillan's support for people living with cancer is in more demand than ever.  Every pound raised by those taking part in events like World's Biggest Coffee Morning helps us be there for someone with cancer when they need us most."

The official World's Biggest Coffee Morning day is on 28 September 2012.  To find out more about the event visit:- macmillan.org.uk/coffee or call:- 0845 602 1246

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