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Dealing with complaints about government

Independent, impartial and free

Make a complaint

Complaints about an action or decision made by a Victorian public organisation

Start an online complaint

Finding the right ombudsman

Did you know there are multiple ombudsmen? Find out which one is right for you.

Find your ombudsman

Our performance in 2019-20

Most complaints closed within a month

We dealt with 89% of complaints within 30 days.

Busy year of investigations and enquiries

We made enquiries or investigated nearly 4,600 cases.

Almost all recommendations adopted

99% of our recommendations to organisations were adopted (in full or partially).

Investigation reports

Read about the issues we’ve investigated, and the recommendations we have made. These reports also help other public organisations think about what can be done to improve their own performance.

View all investigation reports

Investigation report Investigation of protected disclosure complaints regarding the former Principal of a Victorian public school

A Victorian Ombudsman investigation has found that a school principal used his school’s bank account as a personal line of credit obtaining almost $23,000, undetected by the Department of Education and Training.

Tags:
  • Improper conduct
  • Misuse of public funds
  • Dep of Education
Training opportunity illustration

Training opportunities

Our commitment to Victoria’s public sector is to share our wealth of experience, learning and materials to help improve service standards to our community.

View training opportunities

Read about our cases

Case example Siblings reunited after being separated

Byron was placed in foster care while his two sisters were placed in the care of their grandmother Johanna. She wanted to be able to care for Byron. We spoke with Child Protection and reviewed their records. They apologised to Johanna and placed Byron in her care, with his sisters.

Tags:
  • Kinship Care
  • Human Rights
  • Apologies
  • Department of Families, Fairness and Housing

Case example $362 towing fee refunded

Peter was in a car accident and was taken to hospital. Someone moved his car into a spot that became a Clearway that afternoon. His car was impounded and he had to pay $362 to get it back. He asked for a refund but this was refused. We contacted the Department of Transport. Peter received a refund.

Tags:
  • Complaint handling
  • Annual Report
  • Fees
  • Department of Transport

Case example Assisting public housing tenant with maintenance requests

Diane's washing machine broke down. She lived in public housing and had significant health issues. The machine had been installed by the Office of Housing and so Diane asked them for it to be fixed. When she didn't hear back, she contacted us. Her washing machine was replaced.

Tags:
  • Service delays
  • Public Housing
  • Department of Families, Fairness and Housing
  • Office of Housing