Member Responsible for Complaints FAQs

No. The role can fall under another job description at governing body level. Alternatively, if a member of the board takes responsibility for complaints, their current job title would not need to change. 

Yes. We recognise that some housing association boards have members that are also residents.  

No. The MRC should be the governing body, not part of the operational complaints team. To maintain impartiality and effective oversight the MRC should not be involved in day-to-day handling or reporting of complaints.  

No. The MRC should be a member of the governing body - for housing associations that means the main board, for councils it means the lead member or a councillor who has oversight in the cabinet for housing.

Yes, if they have oversight of complaints handling and performance, and can provide assurance to the governing body. 

In this situation, it might work well to have 2 MRCs: 

• one within the operational ALMO  
• one lead member or Councillor for the council 

If appointing 2 is not possible, the role should be performed by the appropriate person from the council. 

This is an individual decision for each landlord, as long as there is at least one appointed MRC.

The Code requires landlords to appoint at least one MRC from the governing body. However, some landlords may choose to appoint more than one. 

There can be benefits to this approach: 

• a senior executive or someone at this level to oversee the operational side of complaints and that learning is embedded across departments 
•  role within the governing board to hold performance to account and offer strategic oversight, ensuring that insights from complaints inform governance and decision making 

We have developed a set of role expectations that outline the key responsibilities and behaviours expected of an MRC.  

View the expectations

No. There are no specific qualifications an MRC is required to have; however, we would expect the MRC to demonstrate their ability to: 

• access information and resource needed to draw out learning from complaints 
• maintain the right balance of challenge and support to senior executives to set the tone of a positive complaint handling culture at board/executive level 
• take an inquisitive approach to information they are presented 

No. There is no set time limit for someone to be MRC. We would recommend that you do not have the same person in a role for too long at risk of overlooking issues, a fresh approach can be positive. In most governance roles, you would see most appointments of 2 terms of 3 years at a maximum. 

Individual landlords should consider this and whether to apply remuneration policies in line with their governance policy. 

Paragraph 9.5 of the Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code sets out landlords are required to appoint a member of the governing body to take lead responsibility for complaints and support a positive complaint handling culture.  

The MRC plays a critical role for ensuring the governing body receives regular, meaningful information on complaint handling performance. This enables the board to gain insight into how effectively complaints are being managed and whether the organisation is learning from them. The MRC is also expected to seek assurance that change is happening and that resident’s voices are being heard through the process. 

While it is not a requirement set out in the Code, it is considered best practice to set out who is performing the role on a landlord’s website as it is for equivalent roles in other codes. 

The landlord’s self-assessment does ask for information on the appointed MRC. This ensures that a member of the governing body has an overview of complaints performance.  

A positive complaint handling culture is for a landlord to be open and accessible with its information. 

On 1 April 2024, the Code became a statutory document, which means a member’s compliance with the Code will became statutory. 

Due to the variety of governance structures amongst scheme members, the self-assessment asks landlords to ‘comply or explain’ where it cannot meet this provision as set out in the Code. 

The Centre for Learning hub offers a dedicated platform for MRCs to post ideas, ask questions, and share good practices. Sign up now to join the conversation.

Learning Hub

We are excited to announce our annual in-person Member Responsible for Complaints event will take place on 15 October 2025 in Leeds. This event is a fantastic opportunity to meet, network, and exchange ideas with your peers and hear about the work of the Ombudsman. 

Register your interest