About us
Our mission is to improve landlords’ services and residents’ lives through housing complaints.
On this page
What we do
Our mission is to improve landlords’ services and residents’ lives through housing complaints.
We are an independent, impartial, and free service for social housing residents.
We make the final decision on disputes between residents and landlords that are registered members of the Scheme. This includes residents and leaseholders of social landlords (housing associations and local authorities), and voluntary members (private landlords and letting agents).
We work with landlords to strengthen internal complaints procedures. We also encourage landlords to learn from complaints to prevent repeated service failures.
The Housing Ombudsman Scheme
All local authorities and registered social housing providers must be members of the Scheme. We also have members that are private landlords that have joined voluntarily.
The Scheme sets out our role, what complaints we can consider, and the obligations of our members.
Who we are
Our organisation has 4 directorates.
- Corporate Services and Change.
- Dispute Support and Resolution.
- Finance, Procurement, and Digital Services.
- Quality, Engagement, and Development.
These teams are supported by our Executive Leadership team and Senior Leadership team.
To strengthen our work and improve our performance, we work with:
Our values
Our 4 values guide how we work, both internally and externally.
- Fairness: We are independent and impartial; we take time to listen carefully and to understand the evidence.
- Learning: We share knowledge and insights to maximise our impact and improve services.
- Openness: We are accessible and accountable; we publish information on our performance and decisions.
- Excellence: We work together to provide an efficient, high-quality service.
Our values and the behaviours that underpin them
Others we work with
We work with the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO), New Homes Ombudsman, Building Safety Regulator, and Regulator of Social Housing.
We work under a Memorandum of Understanding. This agrees a common approach to collaborative working.
Frameworks
Governance framework
We are an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government.
The framework sets out our responsibilities and accountability, the Secretary of State, and officials within the Department.
Systemic framework
Our systemic framework shows how we can look beyond individual disputes to identify wider issues.
It also shows how we share learning to promote good practice and support positive complaint handling.
Corporate documents
Corporate Plan
Annual report and accounts
Policies and data
Our policies
We have published a range of our internal policies and guidance for transparency.
Expenditure data
The government requires us to publish our expenditure data as part of their transparency agenda.
Gender pay gap report 2025-26
As an organisation with more than 250 employees, we must publish an annual report showing the pay gap between our male and female employees.
Resident information
Resident information
We have lots of resources to help residents with issues and complaints. These include:
- when and how to get help from us
- who can use this service
- frequently asked questions
Resident support guides
Use this collection of support guides to make the complaints process easier and clearer.
They will help you understand your rights, know what steps to take, and get practical advice on all aspects of complaints.
These resources will give you the confidence to raise issues and get them resolved.
Our commitment to you
Find out more about our aim to improve landlords’ services and residents’ lives through housing complaints.