OFFICE UPDATE – February 2007

Policies and Procedures

THE OMBUDSMAN’S JURISDICTION – There have been no changes to the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction since the last Update.

 

DISSOLUTION OF THE ASSEMBLY – As you know, the Assembly was dissolved at midnight on 30 January 2007 prior to an election on 7 March 2007. Therefore, until the declaration of the results of that election, there will be no members who can refer complaints to the Ombudsman as required by Article 11(5) of the Ombudsman (NI) Order 1996. I would refer you to the attachment to my e-mail of 24 January 2007 for further guidance on the handling of complaints during this period.

 

OFFICE MANUAL – One Amendment Note was issued since the last Update:

Ø             Amendment Note 1/07 - Revised Sections B2 (Anti-Fraud Policy) and B6 (Purchase Policy) and a new Appendix C (Fraud Response Plan) were added to Part B of the Manual.

 

ANNUAL REPORT – As we are approaching the end of the reporting year may I ask that all outstanding case summaries are completed as soon as possible and passed to Lindsay Rainey.

 

Information Technology

SECURITY AUDIT – In order to ensure the security and integrity of our computer network an independent external security audit will be carried out in March 2007.

 

Staffing and Personnel

DIRECTOR OF INVESTIGATIONS – Following the Assessment Centre and interview stage which was held in the Office on the 18th and 19th January 2007, Ms Michaela Barr has been successful. Michaela will be joining the Office, as Director of Investigations (Health) on 1 March 2007.

 

Accommodation

CLEANING CONTRACT – A tender exercise for the provision of the Office’s cleaning services will be conducted in the next few months.

 

Performance

MONTHLY STATISTICS - During January 2007 we received 52 written complaints (18 CC, 16 AO, 12 HC & 6 O/J). This compares with 29 in December 2006 and 45 in January 2006. The total for the 2006/07 reporting year is 515 written complaints received, compared to 505 for the comparable period in the 2005/06 reporting year.

 

CASE TURNAROUND TIMES – Average case turnaround times (to the nearest number of weeks) for the reporting year to date are as follows:

 

CC

AO

HC

O/J

Stage 2 – Validation

1 week

1 week

1 weeks

0 week

Stage 3 - Investigation

14 weeks

11 weeks

31 weeks

N/A

Stage 4 - Report

50 weeks

41 weeks

70 weeks

N/A

 

Of the 218 Stage 3 & 4 cases cleared in 2006/07:

Ø      101 (46%) were within 3 months of receipt

Ø      33 (15%) were within 3-6 months of receipt

Ø      24 (11%) were within 6-9 months of receipt

Ø      35 (16%) was within 9-12 months of receipt

Ø      18 (8%) were within 12-18 months of receipt

Ø      2 (1%) were within 18-24 months of receipt

Ø      5 (2%) were more than 24 months of receipt

 

MISCELLANEOUS

APPENDIX A – Lists the consultation documents received by the Office since the last Update.

 

LAW CENTRE (NI) PUBLICATIONS – The Law Centre (NI) have recently published 3 guides entitled “Your Rights in Northern Ireland: a Guide for Migrant Workers”. Copies of these guides have been placed in the Library.

 

If you would like further information on any of the above, or have information that you would like to have included in next month’s update, don’t hesitate to contact either Lindsay or me.

 

 

John MacQuarrie

8 February 2007


APPENDIX A

 

The following consultation documents were received by the Office since the last Update:

 

Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006            (DHSSPS)

Establishment of a Regional Statutory Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland            (DHSSPS)

Reintroduction of the Taxi Driving Test and Periodic Training for Taxi Driving Licence Holders (DVTA)

Introduction of a Voluntary Accreditation Scheme for Northern Ireland            (DHSSPS)

Draft Health and Personal Social Services (Reform) (NI) Order 2007 – Transfer of Staff            (DHSSPS)

Proposal for a Draft Order in Council: The Public Authorities Reform (NI) Order 2007            (DHSSPS)

Policy on Supporting Ethnic-Minority Children and Young People who have English as an Additional Language (DE)

Draft Health and Personal Social Services (Reform)(Northern Ireland) Order 2006            (DHSSPS)

Schools for the Future: A Policy for Sustainable Schools            (DE)

Proposals for Managing the Coexistence of GM, Conventional and Organic Crops            (DOE)

Tachographs – Data Downloading and Record Retention            (DOT)

Guiding Principles for the Location of Public Sector Jobs in Northern Ireland            (DFP)

 

Should you wish to have sight of any of these documents please contact Lindsay.