Decision details

The Committee considered a report which proposed to create an additional post within the Customer Services team, to provide resilience and make the team better resourced to deliver the Council’s complaints administration.

The report detailed the changes that had been made by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Housing Ombudsman and Regulator for Social Housing, and the impact this had had on the complaints administration work.

The report set out two options, with the preferred option being to create a permanent Customer Advisor/Complaints Administrator post.  This would be a full-time position with three days per week (22 hours) dedicated to the complaints handling and two days per week (15 hours) operating as a Customer Advisor. This would also allow for a reduction in the overtime budget of £8,000.

The new post would be a Grade 5 post, and would incur additional costs of £34,072.09, to be funded from the General Fund.  With the reduction in the overtime budget the actual cost would be £26,072.09.  A proportion (roughly 42%) would be recharged to the HRA and Dragonfly based on the support service calculations.

In answer to a question about affordability, the Director of Finance and Section 151 Officer explained that the Growth Protection Reserve could be used to balance the increased cost if necessary.

Moved by Councillor Duncan McGregor and seconded by Councillor Deborah Watson

RESOLVED that (1) the establishment of a new full time Customer Advisor/Complainants Administrator post be approved;

(2) it be recommended to Council that the new post be funded via the Council’s General Fund.