FEATURE 1Public contact—consistency in approach

We established the Public Contact Team (PCT) in February 2006 to provide a responsive service to telephone complaints to the office. The PCT is located in our Canberra office and handles the majority of telephone contacts the office receives from across Australia.

Close to one third of the calls to the office are outside the Commonwealth Ombudsman's jurisdiction; PCT members advise callers on where to take up those complaints. PCT members advise many other callers on how to make a complaint in the first instance to the agency they are complaining about, and make a preliminary assessment of other calls to gauge if an Ombudsman investigation is warranted. When complaints require more expert analysis or sustained investigation, they refer them to the most appropriate investigation officer in a specialist team or in one of our state or territory offices.

Since its establishment, PCT members have dealt with over 24,000 telephone calls. Many benefits have flowed from centralising the management of approaches to the office through the PCT. Less complex enquiries are handled more efficiently; there is more consistency in responding to calls and in entering data into the office's complaints management system; emerging problem areas in government administration are easier to detect; and investigation officers have more time for specialised investigation.

Recently the PCT began dealing with email enquiries and complaints submitted using our on-line complaint form. Over the coming year, the team will take over the initial handling of all written approaches to the office.