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
Showing 29 results matching "Child Maintenance Service (CMS)"
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-005135)
UK Government
Partly Upheld
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained the CMS wrongly said he owed arrears, leading to stress, depression, job loss, and financial hardship, and that CMS took too long to provide a breakdown.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-005133)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mr W complained about the CMS failing to follow the correct process for a DNA test, providing incorrect information, and mishandling his complaint, leading to stress and mental health issues.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-005090)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr. E complained that the CMS did not use the correct income to calculate his child maintenance liability and delayed acting on information about his new job.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-005006)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Complaint handling
AI summary: Mrs R complained that the CMS failed to secure consistent arrears payments, provided misleading information, and regularly changed its position on enforcement.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-005002)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Benefits for families and death benefits
AI summary: Miss B complained that the CMS closed her case without collecting outstanding arrears, leaving her without access to her records.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004935)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr T complained CMS used incorrect earnings for his 2022 annual review, leading to overpayments, fees, financial difficulties, and the breakdown of family relationships.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004869)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained CMS wrongly said it could arrange DNA testing, then retracted, causing distress to his children and damaging his relationship with them.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004589)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Miss A complained the CMS failed to notify her of appeal rights, made incorrect calculations, delayed tribunal information, and did not effectively recover arrears from her ex-husband.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004559)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mrs A complained the CMS failed to enforce maintenance arrears, delayed a reconsideration request, and did not respond to complaint letters, causing significant stress and financial loss.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004508)
UK Government
Upheld
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr C complained CMS failed to promptly review his maintenance liability, didn't offer to translate a Polish court order, took inappropriate enforcement action, and ignored his income reduction, causing distress.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-004493)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr H complained CMS wrongly changed his case to Collect and Pay, made it sensitive without his knowledge, refused to revert to Direct Pay, and failed to account for direct payments, causing severe distress.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-003981)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Miss U complained the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) refused to reinstate arrears her ex-partner failed to pay, causing distress and loss of trust.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-003993)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr R complained the CMS failed to carry out a mandatory reconsideration and asset valuation, did not provide callbacks, gave incorrect information, and failed to investigate income concerns since 2018.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-003449)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr V complained CMS provided conflicting information about maintenance arrears being written off, then failed to explain his continued liability, causing him significant stress and financial hardship.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-003120)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: The CMS failed to communicate effectively, did not return calls, provided inconsistent information, and wrongly moved his case to 'Collect and Pay', causing stress and financial impact.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-003060)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: CSA and CMS failed to use powers to secure child maintenance debt owed since 1993, ignored communications, and risked a third of the debt becoming unrecoverable.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002976)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr R complained CMS ignored evidence of his low income, using outdated figures to calculate child maintenance, and didn't consider money his ex-wife owed him.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002797)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained the Child Maintenance Service delayed providing an arrears breakdown and gave conflicting information, impacting his relationship with his daughter and causing financial and mental health issues.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002727)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained the Child Maintenance Service communicated ineffectively, delayed a Tribunal decision, failed to advise of payment reductions, and provided confusing information, impacting his mental health.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002686)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Miss L complained the CMS failed to communicate and take enforcement action from 2018, missing opportunities and delaying payments, causing financial hardship and distress.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002665)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
None
AI summary: CMS failed to act on evidence of his daughter's employment in 2020 and delayed implementing a 2021 tribunal decision, causing him to continue paying unnecessary child maintenance.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002540)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
None
None
AI summary: Mrs G complained CMS failed to ensure collection of child maintenance, delayed recalculating/collecting arrears, ignored income evidence, and provided poor service with inappropriate responses. She sought a financial payment.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002559)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
None
None
None
AI summary: Miss A complained on behalf of Mr O that CMS failed to consider another child in maintenance calculations, used incorrect HMRC data, breached data protection, and incorrectly debited arrears. He sought apology and recalculation.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002491)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained the CMS delayed recalculating his maintenance payments after income changes and shared care arrangements, causing him financial difficulty.
Child Maintenance Service (CMS) (P-002513)
UK Government
Closed After Initial Enquiries
Child maintenance
AI summary: Mr A complained CMS mishandled his child maintenance case by not considering income evidence, sending documents to the wrong address, and causing long complaint delays.
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.