PHSO Casework Decisions
3,622 published casework decisions from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (Apr 2021–Mar 2026). PHSO selects a subset of completed investigations for public publication — these 3,622 decisions represent approximately 1.1% of the 321,459 total complaints received across the same period. Source: decisions.ombudsman.org.uk.
3,622
Published Decisions
3,089
Health
533
Parliamentary (Govt)
18%
Upheld / Partly Upheld
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (P-005118)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Complaint handling
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mr D complained the DVLA did not adhere to a recommendation to award his daughter £400 for failings in the relicensing process, and the sum was insufficient.
University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (P-005121)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Treatment
Treatment
Treatment
Treatment
AI summary: Ms A complained about inadequate care for her daughter X, including inappropriate diet, over-medication, forced PEG feeding, TPN tube insertion, and failure to consider disabilities.
A practice in the Leeds area (P-005115)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Referral
Communication
Record keeping and management
AI summary: Miss A complained the Practice gave wrong advice for her son's ADHD referral, gave no updates, and lost confidential documents. A GP was also dismissive.
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (P-005120)
NHS in England
Partly Upheld
Diagnosis
Surgery
AI summary: Mrs B complained about delays in assessments and treatment for her mother, failures to recognise sepsis, incorrect catheter insertion, and incorrect anaesthetic dosage.
East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust (P-005123)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Diagnosis
AI summary: Mr O complained his father received inadequate care, including lack of encouragement to eat, delayed nutritionist referral, falls with unwound wounds, changing diagnoses and a long discharge process.
Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (P-005113)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Drugs / medication
Drugs / medication
AI summary: Miss R complained her mother was given flupentixol decanoate and a blood thinner, which she alleges caused her illness and death.
South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (P-005111)
NHS in England
Not Upheld
Complaint handling
Treatment
AI summary: Mr B complained his mother was discharged from urology services without monitoring, leading to a cancer diagnosis and her death.
Department for Work and Pensions (P-005103)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Benefits for families and death benefits
Benefits for families and death benefits
AI summary: Mrs C complained HMRC wrongly did not reinstate her tax credits and the DWP did not provide adequate information about claiming UC.
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (P-005099)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mr K complained the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman failed to properly investigate his complaint about being denied food.
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) (P-005104)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Courts
Courts
AI summary: Mr G complained the CICA failed to properly review evidence of his PTSD and did not offer access to a psychologist, leading to an incorrect compensation award.
University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust (P-005105)
NHS in England
Partly Upheld
Facilities and cleanliness
Nursing care
Nursing care
Nursing care
AI summary: Mrs O complained about the loss of her mother's hearing aid, inadequate replacements, and poor skin care leading to a pressure sore.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (P-005107)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Courts
AI summary: Mr X complained HMCTS did not respond to his email requesting his case be struck out, prolonging the proceedings and impacting his well-being.
A practice in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area (P-005102)
NHS in England
Upheld
Diagnosis
Diagnosis
Transfer, discharge and aftercare
Administration
Mr K and Miss G complain that the Practice did not do enough to investigate Mr K’s symptoms, so there was a delay in him being diagnosed with testicular cancer. They also complain the Practice did not do enough to support them after his surgery.
South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust (P-005098)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Treatment
AI summary: Ms A complained about failures in Mr B’s mental health care, including lack of response, ignored requests, and failure to provide support information.
Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (P-005109)
NHS in England
Partly Upheld
Nursing care
Drugs / medication
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mr X complained about failures in cannula monitoring, discharge treatment, and complaint handling related to his mother's care.
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust (P-005096)
NHS in England
Partly Upheld
Diagnosis
AI summary: Mrs X complained her father was not informed about a lung mass, was given incorrect information about cancer, experienced delays in testing, and was not informed he was dying.
An independent provider in the City of Brighton and Hove area (P-005100)
NHS in England
Upheld
Administration
Administration
AI summary: Mrs S complained about delays in knee revision surgery due to an incorrect referral and subsequent delay in making a new referral.
Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) (P-005097)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Victims Code
Complaint handling
AI summary: Ms N complained Acas refused to issue an Early Conciliation certificate, impacting her disability discrimination claim.
Barts Health NHS Trust (P-005108)
NHS in England
Partly Upheld
Treatment
Diagnosis
AI summary: Miss R complained about a failure to remove a pregnancy in 2022 and a failure to consider her pain following childbirth in 2023.
Home Office (P-005106)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Nationality, visas and residency
AI summary: Miss G complained the Windrush Compensation Scheme (WCS) failed to properly consider her evidence as a Close Family Member, leading to an unfair compensation decision.
East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust (P-005101)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Communication
Communication
End of life care
Nursing care
Nursing care
Nursing care
Complaint handling
AI summary: Miss M complained about various aspects of her father's care, including communication of cancer diagnosis, palliative care delay, and personal care neglect.
An independent provider in the Manchester area (P-005110)
NHS in England
Not Upheld
Diagnosis
AI summary: Mr G complained the organisation failed to identify a common bile duct stone during an ultrasound, causing pain and anxiety.
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (P-005112)
NHS in England
Upheld
Treatment
Communication
Nursing care
Nursing care
Risk assessment
Complaint handling
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mr G complained about poor pressure care, lack of dementia support, inadequate fluids, catheter issues, inappropriate placement, and poor record keeping for his mother.
Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust (P-005092)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Treatment
Communication
AI summary: Mrs. A complained her father received tablet chemotherapy instead of intravenous, and the Trust failed to provide advice when his health deteriorated.
North East London Integrated Care Board (P-005091)
NHS in England
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Continuing healthcare
AI summary: Miss A complained her son was wrongly denied a full children and young person’s continuing care (CYPCC) assessment and the ICB did not consider his complex needs.
Upheld / Partly Upheld
259 + 397
18% of decisions found fault with the organisation complained about.
Not Upheld
247
Complaint investigated but no fault found. 1 resolved during investigation.
Closed After Initial Enquiries
2,718
PHSO decided not to proceed to full investigation.
Most complained-about:
HM Revenue and Customs (80), University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (72), NHS England (62), Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (50), HM Courts and Tribunals Service (48).
Published Decisions Over Time
Excludes 2,718 closed before investigation. Quarterly, by outcome.
Annual Complaints (PHSO-wide)
Official PHSO annual statistics across all organisations
| Year | Received | Investigated | Upheld | Upheld % | Remedy % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | 54,478 | 12,275 | 1,216 | 9.9% | 0% |
| 2020-21 | 44,139 | 7,822 | 617 | 7.9% | 0% |
| 2021-22 | 62,553 | 13,426 | 727 | 5.4% | 0% |
| 2022-23 | 61,297 | 15,734 | 782 | 5.0% | 0% |
| 2023-24 | 63,471 | 17,321 | 946 | 5.5% | 0% |
| 2024-25 | 35,521 | 10,070 | 519 | 5.2% | 0% |
Remedy % = percentage of PHSO remedies complied with on time
Top Themes
Themes by Upheld Rate
AI-classified themes across PHSO casework decisions
| Theme | Decisions | Upheld | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delayed Recognition of Deterioration | 747 | 184 | 25% |
| Complaint record keeping failures | 632 | 108 | 17% |
| Clinical negligence harms learning | 460 | 92 | 20% |
| Care plan failures | 436 | 121 | 28% |
| Care and discharge planning | 288 | 77 | 27% |
| No person-centred care | 215 | 46 | 21% |
| Inaccurate and inaccessible patient records | 204 | 37 | 18% |
| Patient dignity and privacy | 147 | 40 | 27% |
| Inadequate Pre-Operative Risk Assessment | 136 | 44 | 32% |
| Duty of Candour implementation | 134 | 43 | 32% |
| Medication Contamination/Misadministration | 128 | 33 | 26% |
| DWP policy impact assessment | 106 | 12 | 11% |
| Poor health and social care integration | 97 | 21 | 22% |
| Mental Health Crisis Referral Delays | 74 | 10 | 14% |
| Coroner family information gaps | 74 | 25 | 34% |
PHSO Complaint Categories
PHSO Categories by Upheld Rate
PHSO's own issue classifications — broad categories such as 'Treatment' cover a wide range of clinical complaints
| Category | Decisions | Upheld | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treatment | 1,610 | 418 | 26% |
| Diagnosis | 850 | 206 | 24% |
| Communication | 792 | 233 | 29% |
| Complaint handling | 534 | 161 | 30% |
| Drugs / medication | 463 | 130 | 28% |
| Nursing care | 388 | 154 | 40% |
| Access | 363 | 87 | 24% |
| Transfer, discharge and aftercare | 353 | 119 | 34% |
| Referral | 262 | 58 | 22% |
| Administration | 191 | 30 | 16% |
| End of life care | 170 | 50 | 29% |
| Choice and Consent | 165 | 48 | 29% |
| Continuing healthcare | 160 | 14 | 9% |
| Surgery | 145 | 32 | 22% |
| Record keeping and management | 133 | 30 | 23% |
Organisation Accountability
Combines PHSO annual complaint statistics (volume, remedy compliance) with published decisions portal data (uphold rate). Sorted by upheld rate for organisations with 5+ investigated decisions. Benchmark: 73% average upheld rate among fully investigated decisions. This differs from the headline 18% figure, which includes all 3,340 published decisions — most of which were closed before full investigation (upheld/not upheld only applies to fully investigated cases). Sparklines show complaint volumes received 2019–20 → 2024–25.
Received = complaints received in most recent year (PHSO annual data). Remedy compliance = % of PHSO-recommended remedies complied with across all available years. — = no data in that dataset for this organisation.