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Former Councillor Jolene Bunting has been disqualified from holding the office of councillor for 3 years following an Adjudication Hearing held today (8 February).

At an Adjudication Hearing held yesterday (28 November) former Councillor Ruth Wilson (Mid and East Antrim Borough Council) acknowledged that a comment she made on Facebook in 2018 was a breach of the Local Government Code of Conduct for Councillors.

Alderman John Carson (Mid and East Antrim Borough Council), has been suspended from his role as councillor for 3 months following an Adjudication Hearing held on 10 October.

Councillor Marc Collins (Mid and East Antrim Borough Council), has been suspended from his role as a councillor for 8 months following an Adjudication Hearing held on 24 June.

Former Councillor Declan Boyle (Belfast City Council) has been censured by the Local Government Commissioner for Standards after being found to have breached a number of parts of the Code of Conduct relating to declaration of interests.

We will be operating a reduced telephone service on the week beginning 20 December 2021. This will allow our senior case workers some additional time to clear their casework, as far as possible, before the Christmas closure.

Ombudsman Margaret Kelly has called for patients to be given a central role in shaping safety protocols within Northern Ireland's health service.

Speaking yesterday (20 March) at a conference on patient safety, Ms Kelly asked the Department of Health to take the lead in creating a comprehensive framework that empowers patients and fosters a culture of safety and accountability.

With a keynote address from Sir Robert Francis KC (Chair of the Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust inquiries, 2010 and 2013), the conference brought together a range of voices and expertise to explore potential strategies and approaches to improving patient safety and public trust in our health and social care system.

Ms Kelly stated:

‘Complaints, patient feedback, and raising concerns have proven to be a reliable indicator of safety issues.  Patients must be central to any solutions to improve patient safety. Our investigation work highlights a culture that is sometimes defensive rather than open with patients, and which does not always use complaints as an opportunity to learn and prevent future harm. We hope this conference will mark a step towards ensuring that patient perspectives are not only heard but actively incorporated into the fabric of healthcare policies and practices.

A Patient Safety Strategy setting out how our health system is prioritising safety and involving patients in the process would provide reassurance and help build public trust in a health system that is committed to being patient centred.’

A report from the conference will be published in the near future.

Public bodies should be transparent.  They should record the criteria for decision making and give reasons for their decisions.

This was the message given by Ombudsman Margaret Kelly and Deputy Ombudsman Sean Martin at a recent talk given to an event held in the Public Records Office Northern Ireland.

While people don't generally complain about poor record keeping, explained Ms Kelly, a significant proportion of those cases going to the Ombudsman's Further Investigation stage uncover issues with record keeping.  This often can be an indicator of other underlying problems.

Stressing how good records protect everyone, both urged members of staff working in public bodies to record their rationale when making key decisions.  This not only helps others within the public body but can act as a 'shield' if those decisions are questioned at some point in the future.

Our Quarterly Bulletin highlights some of our most recent investigation reports and provides other updates on our work.