Public sector complaints up by almost one third, report shows
The ombudsman pushed for greater resources to meet the rising demand.
Complaints to Scotland’s public sector ombudsman have increased by almost one third in a single year, a report shows.
The Scottish Public Sector Ombudsman (SPSO) released its annual accounts on Thursday, showing 6,588 complaints were made in the 2025-26 financial year, up 31% compared to the previous year.
The number of whistleblower complaints also increased by a third, rising to 177 in the most recent year.
Ombudsman Paul McFadden said: “SPSO has responded effectively to the challenges placed on our service, delivering record levels of complaints decisions and demonstrating significant resilience and agility to continue to change and evolve how we deliver our service.
“However, the upward trend in complaints is continuing through 2026-27 and brings risks to delivery and growing wait times.
“As these pressures increase, we continue to evolve how we work, focusing our resources and new technologies where there is the greatest need, the most significant public interest and the highest risk of injustice.
“In the midst of these pressures, we must not lose sight of SPSO’s wider value to public service improvement with insights from complaints having an essential contribution to make to prevention and seeking to retain the trust and confidence of the public.”
The report warned of the need to increase resources available to the SPSO as a result of the increasing demand.
“We continue to adapt our approach through improved triage and impact-based proportionality, further efficiency measures, and exploration of digital and AI enabled tools.
“However, without additional investigative resource, the sustainability of our financial and operating models and delivery of our statutory functions is at risk, with serious implications for access to justice and public confidence.”
The Scottish Parliament, which funds the SPSO, has been contacted for comment.