Essex and Birmingham received more complaints about adult social care than any other councils in England last year, new figures show.
The data, published by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman on Thursday, shows 76 complaints were made about Essex County Council and 75 about Birmingham City Council in 2025-26.
Overall, there were 3,938 complaints about adult social care made to the ombudsman, a 22% increase on the previous year.
More than a quarter of complaints (27%) were about assessments and care planning, while 21% related to charges for care and 15% involved safeguarding concerns.
Torbay had the fewest complaints, with three relating to assessments and care planning.
In total, the ombudsman investigated 904 complaints and 77% were upheld.
Social care ombudsman Amerdeep Clarke said there were ‘welcome signs of improvement’ in how councils and care providers handled complaints, but warned there was ‘still more to be done’.
She said authorities should ensure care providers had up-to-date complaints policies reflecting best practice, including clear signposting to the ombudsman as the final stage of the complaints process.
‘Dealing with complaints properly isn’t just the right thing to do, it is fundamental to fostering excellent relations with your clients, families, and the wider communities.’
Clarke added: ‘Behind every one of these numbers if a person, a family or a carer trying to get things back on track after something has gone wrong. Getting the fundamentals right: clear records, honest explanations and proper signposting to our service protects everyone’.
Commenting on the news, Dr Wendy Taylor MBE, chair of the Local Government Association’s Health and Wellbeing Committee, said the review of adult social care complaints ‘underlines the ongoing pressure the sector is under.’
‘It is encouraging to see acknowledgement of the improvement councils and care providers are making already in the handling of complaints, as well as the difficult circumstances in which they’re operating,’ Taylor said.
‘Councils continue to work hard to try and ensure people who need it receive safe and high-quality care.
‘Complaints systems form an important part of this process. We are working with councils across England to support this improvement, but reform of adult social care cannot come soon enough.’
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