GBC offices at Millmead

By Emily Dalton

local democracy reporter

“Failing to do what we promise to do” is one of the key drivers of rising complaints to Guildford Borough Council (GBC)’s housing department. Escalated housing complaints to GBC have soared by over 500 per cent in 2023/24, and officers note the trend is “continuing”.

Failure to complete housing repairs has seen a staggering 350 per cent increase in the number of complaints from 22/23 to 23/24. Issues relating to damp and mould have also increased. These leapt up by 230 per cent (to 10), as recorded in a GBC Housing Ombudsman complaint report published last week.

Complaints ranged from moving house, the condition of the property, renting, failing to complete repairs and slow responses.

Delays in removing reported fly-tipping, failing to fix maintenance problems, not dealing with noise grievances or disagreement over staff conduct are some of the initial complaints that have been raised with the housing department. Complaints at the initial Stage 1 have jumped to 246 (78 per cent) from the previous year’s 141.

Escalated complaints (Stage 2) have increased five-fold (from 3 to 20) as tenants grumble against the department’s inaction. The report states: “We [the housing department] are driving these increased levels by failing to do what we have promised to do.”

Officers have said the system needs to be upgraded “to allow for actions promised at Stage 1 and 2 to be logged, tracked and held accountable”. Although GBC said it does have a complaints tracker, the new upgrade would enable managers to “proactively monitor” housing issues which have not yet been resolved. This would help make sure the problems are fixed in a timely manner.

The report reads: “Complaints can help to build up an accurate picture of how our services are performing and to develop improvement plans that are based on sound evidence. […] we are focused on learning the lessons from complaints over the last 18 months.”

Mitigating the rocketing number of complaints going to superior officers, the report said it was a “healthy indicator” that the process, and publicity around it, is “allowing tenants to make informed decisions”. With the council looking after the management and maintenance of around 5,200 homes, the proportion of complaints issued to GBC’s housing department is a minority.

Meeting documents state the dramatic increase in volumes is “expected” and in-line with industry-wide trends following greater transparency in the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code. Tenants are advised at every stage of the process what their options are for escalation, according to the report.

A GBC spokesperson said: “We are committed to providing an excellent service for our customers, but we know we don’t always get it right and we recognise our customers have a right to complain when they feel we have fallen short. As well as giving us the chance to put things right, complaints give us valuable feedback on our services that help us improve.”

Read the GBC report here.