Information about complaints we’ve received between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024.
Total complaints received
6,900 total complaints were received this year. Of those:
- 5,533 were Stage 1 complaints
- 1,367 were Stage 2 complaints
There was a 30% increase in complaints received compared with last year (2022 to 2023).
24.7% of complaints progressed to Stage 2.
85.8% of complaints were responded to within the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code timescales.
Complaints that go to the Housing Ombudsman
Some of the complaints that we have not managed to resolve go to the Housing Ombudsman.
138 cases were determined this year, which is a 31% increase on last year.
347 findings were made this year (note, there can be multiple findings per case). A full breakdown is below:
| HOS finding category | Amount |
| Maladministration | 171 |
| Service failure | 73 |
| Adequate redress | 35 |
| No maladministration | 29 |
| Out of jurisdiction | 27 |
| Severe maladministration | 12 |
We also received 6 complaint handling failure orders.
You can find out more about the different types of findings and decisions on the Housing Ombudsman’s website.
Self-assessment against the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code
The Housing Ombudsman updated their Complaint Handling Code guidelines in April 2024. We monitor our compliance by carrying out a self-assessment against the code every year.
MTVH is fully compliant with the Complaint Handling Code. Read our latest self-assessment for 2023/2024 (PDF).
How we’re improving the complaints process
While we are disappointed to see complaints increasing by 30% this year, we remain committed to continuously improving the services we provide to our residents.
Raising awareness
Work has taken place this year to ensure that residents are aware of the complaint process and feel comfortable to contact us about concerns. Awareness has been supported by national and social media campaigns, including the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities “make it right”campaign.
Staff changes
Two new management roles have been introduced within the complaints team to lead improved resolution of complaints at stage 1 and to ensure trends and learnings are more swiftly identified and acted upon across the organisation.
Service improvement and learnings
As part of our commitment to maintaining a positive complaint handling culture within the organisation, learnings and service improvements have been identified from complaints and HOS cases. These learnings have influenced changes in service delivery and policy in the past year and will continue to do so in the coming year.
We’ve identified 4 core areas for service improvement:
1. Support for vulnerable customers during the complaint process
Refresher training has been provided to all complaint handlers on how to identify and support residents who may require additional support during their complaint.
2. The need for timely action following complaints
The newly formed Property Experience team now monitor complaint resolution action plans to make sure that agreed repairs take place as agreed. If this is not possible, they make sure to keep the customer updated.
3. Record keeping across the organisation
The introduction of Salesforce Customer Relationship Management (CRM) during the year has helped to keep track of complaints from start to finish and dramatically improved our record keeping.
4. Compensation values offered during the complaint process
Our existing compensation policy will be revised in the coming year following engagement with residents. In the meantime, revised guidance about when to offer compensation to residents has been provided to complaint handlers.
Read our annual report for more information
Our Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report contains full details of our complaint performance from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.
It also has key learnings and service improvements made following the resolution of complaints
Read the Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report for 2023/2024
Our past complaints performance
- 2022/23 – MTVH complaints results
- 2021/22 – MTVH complaints results
- 2020/21 – MTVH complaints results
- 2019/20 – MTVH complaints results
- 2018/19 – Metropolitan Housing complaints results
- 2018/19 – Thames Valley Housing – Complaints by category stage 3 (PDF)
- 2018/19 – Thames Valley Housing – Complaints by outcome (PDF)