Complaints about council services across the country have seen the sharpest rise in more than a decade.
In the West Midlands, 2,505 complaints were lodged with the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman during 2025-26, representing nine per cent of all complaints received nationally.
Of the complaints and enquiries received in the West Midlands, 27 per cent related to children’s services and education, 19 per cent to housing, and 13 per cent to adult care services.
The region recorded 40.5 complaints per 100,000 residents, below the national average of 46.1.
The Ombudsman upheld 83 per cent of complaints investigated from the West Midlands, compared to a national average of 86 per cent.
This resulted in 335 upheld decisions, equal to 5.4 per 100,000 residents.
Nationally, 27,625 complaints were made, marking a 33 per cent rise from the previous year.
The Ombudsman found that 99.9 per cent of councils complied with recommendations when fault was identified.
There was also a 20 per cent rise in cases where the Ombudsman determined that councils had already resolved complaints appropriately before they were escalated.
Amerdeep Clarke, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: “Behind every complaint we receive is a person who felt they had nowhere else to turn: a parent trying to get the right support for their child at school, an older person struggling to access the care they need, or a family facing the very real prospect of homelessness.
“The sheer number of people coming to us this year tells us something important: increasingly residents feel they are not getting the help they are entitled to from their local council.
“Councils are under real pressure, and we recognise that.
“But everyone deserves to have their complaint heard fairly and the best councils use that learning to make a difference for residents.
“When we do investigate and find real problems, we ask councils to make practical improvements to their services, so that other people don’t face the same issues in future and it is encouraging that councils overwhelmingly do carry out those improvements.”