Fact sheets

  • Dealing with the Commonwealth Ombudsman's office - Information for agencies
    An overview of the Ombudsman’s role, powers and responsibilities, and how the office deals with complaints and approaches to assist agencies and individuals dealing with Ombudsman enquiries and investigations.
  • Fact sheet 1 - Ombudsman investigations
    An overview of the Ombudsman’s powers, investigations processes, recommendations, remedies and remedial actions, and working cooperatively with the Ombudsman’s office.
  • Fact sheet 2 - Administrative deficiency
    An overview of the categories of administrative deficiency - a phrase used by the Ombudsman’s office when referring to agency action that is assessed as being 'deficient' for a reason specified explicitly or implicitly in s 15 of the Ombudsman Act 1976.
  • Fact sheet 3 - Providing remedies
    Explains the remedies that can be provided for poor administration by Australian Government agencies to assist agencies to identify and provide an appropriate remedy for a person who has suffered disadvantage as a consequence of poor administrative practice.
  • Fact sheet 4 - Use of interpreters
    The Australian community is entitled to effective access to government services, and some individuals or groups may need an interpreter to help them access those services or communicate with government officials. This fact sheet sets out eight best practice principles for Australian government agencies when using interpreters.
  • Fact sheet 5 - Ten principles for good administration
    The Ombudsman prepared a series of reports between 2005 and 2007 following our investigation of 247 cases of immigration detention. The reports detailed the administrative problems and errors that were uncovered during the investigations, and culminated with a report providing ten principles for good administration. This fact sheet sets out ten principles for promoting good public administration.
  • Fact sheet 6 - Complaint handling: Outsourcing
    Government functions are often delivered to the public by private sector organisations. While there can be advantages, there can be a downside if adequate controls are not in place to ensure accountability of decisions and actions taken by the service provider. This fact sheet outlines the steps that government agencies and the organisations providing a service must take to ensure proper complaint handling arrangements are in place for outsourced services.
  • Fact sheet 7 - Complaint handling: multiple agencies
    Many government services involve two or more Australian government agencies administering a single program, such as airports where police, customs and immigration officials are present. This fact sheet highlights areas that agencies should consider when faced with complaints about any multi-agency program.
  • Fact sheet 8 - Unreasonable complainant conduct
    Based on the Better practice guide to managing unreasonable complainant conduct, this fact sheet sets out the principles for dealing with unreasonable conduct by complainants. More detailed information and advice is available in the Better practice guide to managing unreasonable complainant conduct.
  • Fact sheet 9 - Compensation for detriment caused by defective administration
    This fact sheet sets out best practice principles for agencies to follow when dealing with CDDA claims, and is intended to supplement the guidance provided to agencies in Finance Circular 2009/09 ‘Discretionary Compensation and Waiver of Debt Mechanisms’.