RQ1717367 – Complaints & Information Governance Officer in London

Purpose of Job: To be responsible to the Team Leader Complaints & Information Governance. To be responsible for dealing effectively with the corporate complaints, school complaints, statutory social care complaints, Ombudsman and Information Commissioner’s Office enquiries, Freedom of Information and Data Protection Act enquiries, and Member’s Enquiries to the Directorate of Children’s Services. To work as part of a team delivering high quality services across the remit of the service having lead responsibility for one or two of the following areas as designated by the Head of Service i.e. (i) Complaints (ii) Freedom of Information; (iii) Data Protection (iv) Member’s Enquiries. To develop and maintain good relations with service areas and partner agencies. To maintain a good working knowledge of the legislation, policies, and protocols relevant to the work of the service e.g. Information governance and complaints procedures relevant to Children’s Services. To provide an excellent and professional standard of service to all stakeholders, including provision of advice and guidance.

Main Duties:

• To act as the first point of contact for all aspects of complaints, Ombudsman and Information Commissioner’s Office enquiries, Freedom of Information and Data Protection Act enquiries, and Member’s Enquiries.
• To provide expert advice and support on legislation and statutory guidance on Complaints, Individual Rights (DPA 2018/GDPR) and Freedom of Information including the drafting of legal exemptions in response to requests from staff and managers and as directed by the Team Manager / Head of Complaints, Information Governance and DMT Support.
• To champion and promote effective complaints and information handling / management across the Directorate and ensure an excellent service to both internal and external customers.
• To be fully conversant with the legislation, government guidance and best practice related to the management of complaints, Freedom of Information and Data Protection Act enquiries within Children’s Services and to interpret and apply this appropriately, ensuring the correct procedures are applied to ensure regulatory compliance, minimise further challenge and protect against reputational damage to the Council.
• To ensure professional legal advice is commissioned where appropriate and to employ innovative and creative solutions in order to respond to complex requests and issues in absence of established guidelines and procedures.
• To be responsible for the allocation and checking of work for temporary and newly recruited staff, including apprentices, and provide coaching and support in order to develop their skills and knowledge in relation to the role.
• As directed and on a short‑term basis, to act as deputy to the Team Manager in their absence.
• To provide support and advice to investigating officers and independent persons and panel members for stage 2 & 3 (respectively) for statutory Children Act complaint investigations.

Complaints:

• To be responsible for effectively managing and dealing with all children’s statutory (Children Act 1989), Children’s Services and Council’s complaints effectively and within the current legal framework and guidance.
• To ensure that complaints are properly logged, assigned to the relevant procedure, and tracked for compliance with timescales at all stages of the complaint procedures.
• To undertake thorough and detailed investigations of complaints about Children’s Services.
• To mediate and work with staff and managers to bring about an early resolution of complaints, liaising with other services as necessary.
• To research background details to complaints and conduct interviews with members of the public, council officers and other stakeholders.
• To review responses to complaints and conduct quality assurance checks on the standards of complaints, casework and correspondence handled by staff and managers across the Directorate.
• To prepare responses to complaints and conduct quality assurance checks on the standards of complaints casework and correspondence handled by staff and managers across the Directorate.
• To monitor and ensure follow up action required and ensure customers are kept up to date with progress and are aware of the options if they are dissatisfied with the agreed actions to resolve a complaint.
• To undertake analysis and provide insights to the topics of complaints received and produce reports which identify trends and learning, making recommendations for service improvement.
• To research, investigate and draft responses to the Local Government Ombudsman and Information Commissioner’s Office enquiries.
• To facilitate resolution meetings between professionals and service users, contributing to prompt and a positive resolution of complaints.

Information Governance Freedom of Information:

• To ensure compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and related provisions through development, implementation, and adherence to relevant procedures.
• To lead on the processing and responses to FOIA requests, liaising with staff, managers, and teams across the council to draft high quality, accurate replies which address all issues raised within the local and legal timescales.
• To produce reports on the number of FOI enquiries received and timescales of responding to requests and identifying any themes to be considered when improving the service.
• To provide advice and guidance to staff, stakeholders, and members of the public on all aspects Freedom of Information, developing and maintaining good relations with service areas.
• To log and action all requests under the FOIA in accordance with procedures, checking the validity of requests against the Act, allocating enquiries to the relevant service area within Children’s Services.
• To proactively research, gather information and respond to FOIA requests resolving routine queries promptly.
• To collate and quality assure responses prior to seeking approval for release.
• When applicable, advise on exemptions, evidence the need, and draft the relevant exemption for approval by the legal team.

Data Protection:

• In line with local procedures, to facilitate access to records held by Children’s Services for previous and current service users.
• To respond to requests from external agencies requiring access and/or disclosure of information held by Children’s Services ensuring compliance with legislative requirements and data sharing protocols.
• Organise and archive records and maintain a register of archived files, including assigning retention dates and confirming the destruction of records in compliance with legislative and best practice guidance on the retention and destruction of personal records.
• To log and track all requests for personal information and related individual rights ensuring compliance with statutory requirements in the release or sharing of information.
• To prepare case files for disclosure giving consideration safeguarding, third party issues, rules of disclosure and potential liability risks to the Council.
• To advise on the policy on individual rights within the Council, external agencies and to the public ensuring transparency and accessibility in accordance with legislation and information sharing protocols.
• To apply the Council’s financial procedures when raising purchases orders, cheque and BACS payments as required by the role.
• To process information sharing requests from the Police, National Crime Agency, other local authorities, and partner agencies in accordance with best practice, statutory guidance, information sharing protocols and when applicable court orders.
• When appropriate liaise with Legal and Insurance in the preparation and disclosure of personal files and when sharing information with other agencies.
• To produce reports on the number of Individual Rights Requests and other data sharing requests received and timescales of responding and identifying any themes to be considered when improving the service.
• In line with local procedures, to support the Team Leader for Complaints & Information Governance with investigations into breaches of the DPA.

Members Enquiries:

• To be responsible for managing casework resulting from enquiries from elected members including MPs.
• To log all enquiries and track responses to ensure compliance with timescales and close cases once completed.
• To maintain the members case work log.
• To undertake research to inform responses to members’ enquiries.
• To cross reference member enquiries with complaints and ensure responses are consistent and accurate.
• To draft comprehensive high-quality responses in accordance with set standards for clearance by DMT.
• To monitor the implementation of actions arising.
• When appropriate to liaise with members on routine enquiries, keeping them updated on progress.
• To liaise with other directorates ensuring a professional and unified approach to cross directorate enquiries.

Generic:

• As and when required, to check and process invoices from persons engaged as independent persons / panel members for complaint investigations.
• To undertake project work as required supporting the development of Departmental systems, processes and knowledge relating to the business requirements of the service.
• To carry out all duties with a focus on customer service, with adherence to strict confidentiality standards and compliance with the Data Protection, and related legislation and regulations.
• To contribute to the development and review of policy and procedures relevant to the service.
• To undertake any other work appropriate to the level and general nature of the post’s duties.
• To undertake all duties with due regard to the provisions of health and safety regulations and legislation, the Council’s Equal Opportunities and Customer Care policies, and the New Technology agreement.