A report out today shows that the number of people contacting the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman for help with their complaints has reached an all-time high.

The Ombudsman’s annual report shows that nearly 24,000 enquiries were received last year. 4,732 of the cases resolved by the Ombudsman during the year were from people who had already tried to get their complaint sorted out by the organisation they were unhappy with. The Ombudsman’s involvement resulted in 591 apologies and 531 compensation payments. Compared to the previous year, complaints about the NHS were up 7% and complaints about government departments fell by 8%.

The kind of complaints resolved by the Ombudsman last year include a man with learning difficulties who was incorrectly placed on a violent patients’ scheme and a couple whose relative suffered before her death due to severe failings in NHS care and support for her Alzheimer’s condition.