PHSO Claim of conformance with ISO9001

C Rock made this Freedom of Information request to Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Automatic anti-spam measures are in place for this older request. Please let us know if a further response is expected or if you are having trouble responding.

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman did not have the information requested.

Dear Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman,

PHSO claim of Alignment with BSI Standards

The PHSO has claimed conformance with BSI Standard known as “ISO 9001” specifying
“Requirements for a quality management system when, in brief, an organization needs to:
“a) Demonstrate its ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, and
“b) Demonstrates its aims to enhance customer satisfaction through the effective application of the system, including processes for improvement of the system and the assurance of conformity to customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.”.

 Thus, were the PHSO’s claim is to be substantiated, it would have undergone an audit by a certification body accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), which is the national accreditation body for the UK.

 The certification body would have audited the PHSO's quality management system and processes to ensure they meet the requirements of the ISO 9001 standard.

 If the PHSO passed the audit, it would have been awarded certification to the standard, and the certification would be subject to ongoing surveillance audits by the certification body to ensure ongoing compliance.

 It would be bound to a schedule of self-audits, available for independent inspection.

Please would you supply some information on how this was implemented and, then, how this is independently assessed and assured for PHSO’s claimed conformity.

(1) When was ‘compliance with ISO 9001’ implemented at PHSO?
(2) May I see copy of statement / certification confirming independent assessment at that time?
(3) How often is PHSO system independently assessed? (Provide schedule.)
(4) When PHSO was last independently assessed as part of ongoing surveillance, was there a report from the Assessors? May I see that online or otherwise?
(5) When was PHSO last self-assessed in its Internal Audit programme? (Provide schedule please).
(6) Can I see the last three years of outcome in measures of customer satisfaction including
• any evidence of independent assessment of service complaints?
• conclusions of assessments -- corrective actions taken on reported/discovered problems reported or discovered; e.g. in the form of:
• evidence of an Internal Audit, Non-Conforming & Corrective Action Tracker
Are any of the above easily found and accessible to me?

To help in your research and response, you may wish to bear in mind:
I enquire regarding all key requirements as given above (also see detail, below), from “ISO 9001… Abstract”, especially with regard to:

• Demonstrating consistency in conformance (a, above)
• Meeting statutory and regulatory requirements (a, above)
• Measure of customer satisfaction upholding essential aims of a quality control system claiming ISO9001 (b, above).

I am less interested in written PHSO case investigation matter you may offer—which will be of minor significance if not established through the Quality System I question, that is, tested to be carried out and fully compliant, and flexible enough to be improved as necessary under a proper quality control system.

I am asking about Assurance systems showing assessed Procedures are followed, and that Measures are comprehensive and balanced. Additionally, that in-house assessments under ISO 9001 are carried out without prejudice by PHSO Quality Manager team; tested, reported and, critically, that professional Independent Assessments are echoed in that manner, to provide the “Assurance” element of compliance.

Nota Bene I am particularly interested in obtaining clarity and transparency of actions in this matter, in the expectation of assistance, without inflection of dismissal, diversion, slander or tension, as I have felt in previous responses and have notified to you for attention—yet to receive recognition of my complaints, or constructive feedback as I would expect.

(7) Please advise me of the entitled PHSO Quality Manager’s name and departmental address.

I submit my enquiry as given. If you are not clear on any aspect of my 7 questions, please respond at earliest opportunity.

If you consider it will take too much resource, advise me sooner rather than later. I can then submit it in smaller tranches modified according to previous responses.

Thank you for your attention within permitted period and costs.

-------------------------------------------------
More about ISO 9001 (amended 2015)

I offer the following, which may be your reference in future enquiry in PHSO claims of conformance:

ISO 9001 Mandatory Requirements — Documents and Records
 Monitoring and measuring equipment calibration records
 Records of training, skills, experience and qualifications
 Product/service requirements review records
 Record about design and development outputs review
 Record about design and development inputs
 Records of design and development controls
 Records of design and development outputs
 Design and development changes records
 Characteristics of product to be produced and service to be provided
 Records about customer property
 Production/service provision change control records
 Record of conformity of product/service with acceptance criteria
 Record of nonconforming outputs
 Monitoring measurement results
 Internal audit program
 Results of internal audits
 Results of the management review
 Results of corrective actions

This is a list of essential requirements, not each of which will be directly relevant to Services provision, but most will still be relevant in PHSO environment where accuracy and trust has to be maintained. e.g. training, design and development of internal processes, records of conformity, of non-conformity, of corrective actions, monitoring and audits. External and internal Complaints would have significant input to these process with clear priority over self-assessments.

------------------------

Yours faithfully,

C Rock

InformationRights, Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

Thank you for contacting the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s
(PHSO) Freedom of Information and Data Protection Team. This is to confirm
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will need to inform us of this and confirm your current address as soon as
possible. Angharad Jackson Data Protection Officer & Assistant Director
Information Assurance Office of the Parliamentary and Health Service
Ombudsman PHSO CityGate 47-51 Mosley Street Manchester M2 3HQ
[email address]

C Rock left an annotation ()

There appears to be more deliberate confusion and obfuscation here.

I've wanted and needed to make many complaints of PHSo
Maladministration, such as:

Unnecessary and senseless harm to complaianant, apparently by Tactic.
Refusal to give any complaint reference or log number for accoutability
Refusal to state what their service compalint procedure is
Their statement (in FOI) that PHSO "dont need a complaint procedure"
Their claim that their systems are in line with ISO standard
The ISO requirement of having a complaint procedure
Maintaining this unreconcileable stancer years-on-year without any acceptance, nor advice of change nor any accountability

Surely this is corrution of service charters, UK provider requirements and PHSO's own Principles.

All fake it seems.

I'd like some answers.

Dear Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman,

PHSO Please note, your rights to delay this question expire on June 7th. Please ensure your unambiguous responses is made by end of that date. I note you have not requested clarification up to this time. If you have a problem please report this to me. Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

C Rock

Dear Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman,

Since my asking it now appears that the PHSO stopped compliance with ISO9001 as previously claimed.
Can you confirm this or correct me.

In any case, please will you respond as if for the ISO duration.

Yours faithfully,

C Rock

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

Dear C Rock,

Thank you for your email of 9 May 2023 in which you requested information
from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. Your request has been
handled in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Your Request:

“PHSO claim of Alignment with BSI Standards

The PHSO has claimed conformance with BSI Standard known as “ISO 9001”
specifying “Requirements for a quality management system when, in brief,
an organization needs to:

“a) Demonstrate its ability to consistently provide products and services
that meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements,
and

“b) Demonstrates its aims to enhance customer satisfaction through the
effective application of the system, including processes for improvement
of the system and the assurance of conformity to customer and applicable
statutory and regulatory requirements.”.

 Thus, were the PHSO’s claim is to be substantiated, it would have
undergone an audit by a certification body accredited by the United
Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), which is the national accreditation
body for the UK.

 The certification body would have audited the PHSO's quality management
system and processes to ensure they meet the requirements of the ISO 9001
standard.

 If the PHSO passed the audit, it would have been awarded certification
to the standard, and the certification would be subject to ongoing
surveillance audits by the certification body to ensure ongoing
compliance.

 It would be bound to a schedule of self-audits, available for
independent inspection.

Please would you supply some information on how this was implemented and,
then, how this is independently assessed and assured for PHSO’s claimed
conformity.

(1) When was ‘compliance with ISO 9001’ implemented at PHSO?

(2) May I see copy of statement / certification confirming independent
assessment at that time?

(3) How often is PHSO system independently assessed? (Provide schedule.)

(4) When PHSO was last independently assessed as part of ongoing
surveillance, was there a report from the Assessors? May I see that online
or otherwise?

(5) When was PHSO last self-assessed in its Internal Audit programme?
(Provide schedule please).

(6) Can I see the last three years of outcome in measures of customer
satisfaction including

• any evidence of independent assessment of service complaints?

• conclusions of assessments -- corrective actions taken on
reported/discovered problems reported or discovered; e.g. in the form of:

• evidence of an Internal Audit, Non-Conforming & Corrective Action
Tracker

Are any of the above easily found and accessible to me?

To help in your research and response, you may wish to bear in mind:

I enquire regarding all key requirements as given above (also see detail,
below), from “ISO 9001… Abstract”, especially with regard to:

• Demonstrating consistency in conformance (a, above)

• Meeting statutory and regulatory requirements (a, above)

• Measure of customer satisfaction upholding essential aims of a quality
control system claiming ISO9001 (b, above).

I am less interested in written PHSO case investigation matter you may
offer—which will be of minor significance if not established through the
Quality System I question, that is, tested to be carried out and fully
compliant, and flexible enough to be improved as necessary under a proper
quality control system.

I am asking about Assurance systems showing assessed Procedures are
followed, and that Measures are comprehensive and balanced. Additionally,
that in-house assessments under ISO 9001 are carried out without prejudice
by PHSO Quality Manager team; tested, reported and, critically, that
professional Independent Assessments are echoed in that manner, to provide
the “Assurance” element of compliance.

Nota Bene I am particularly interested in obtaining clarity and
transparency of actions in this matter, in the expectation of assistance,
without inflection of dismissal, diversion, slander or tension, as I have
felt in previous responses and have notified to you for attention—yet to
receive recognition of my complaints, or constructive feedback as I would
expect.

(7) Please advise me of the entitled PHSO Quality Manager’s name and
departmental address.

I submit my enquiry as given. If you are not clear on any aspect of my 7
questions, please respond at earliest opportunity.

If you consider it will take too much resource, advise me sooner rather
than later. I can then submit it in smaller tranches modified according to
previous responses.

Thank you for your attention within permitted period and costs.

-------------------------------------------------

More about ISO 9001 (amended 2015)

I offer the following, which may be your reference in future enquiry in
PHSO claims of conformance:

ISO 9001 Mandatory Requirements — Documents and Records

 Monitoring and measuring equipment calibration records

 Records of training, skills, experience and qualifications

 Product/service requirements review records

 Record about design and development outputs review

 Record about design and development inputs

 Records of design and development controls

 Records of design and development outputs

 Design and development changes records

 Characteristics of product to be produced and service to be provided

 Records about customer property

 Production/service provision change control records

 Record of conformity of product/service with acceptance criteria

 Record of nonconforming outputs

 Monitoring measurement results

 Internal audit program

 Results of internal audits

 Results of the management review

 Results of corrective actions

This is a list of essential requirements, not each of which will be
directly relevant to Services provision, but most will still be relevant
in PHSO environment where accuracy and trust has to be maintained. e.g.
training, design and development of internal processes, records of
conformity, of non-conformity, of corrective actions, monitoring and
audits. External and internal Complaints would have significant input to
these process with clear priority over self-assessments.”

Our Response:

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman does not claim compliance with
ISO 9001. Therefore, we can confirm that the information requested
relating to points 1 – 6 is not held.

In relation to your request for the Quality Managers Name and Departmental
address.

This information is exempt under section 40(2) of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 by virtue of section 40(3)(a)(i). This is because the
name and departmental address of our staff are personal information, only
disclosed when appropriate, and if it is in the public interest to
disclose. Putting such information into the public domain would be against
the legitimate expectations of the individual(s) concerned and thus
unfair, and a breach of the first data protection principle as set out at
Article 5 of the General Data Protection Regulation.

The details of our senior members of staff are available on our website
the Assistant Director responsible for Quality is Deirdre Micklethwaite.
Once again, addresses and contact details of our Assistant Directors are
considered personal information and therefore exempt under Section 40(2).

There are adequate channels of communication to the Parliamentary and
Health Service Ombudsman and its staff, such as through our advice line
(0345 015 4033) and our email address [1][email address].

If you believe we have made an error in the way we have processed your
information request, it is open to you to request an internal review. You
can do this by writing to us by post or by email to
[2][PHSO request email]. You will need to specify what the
nature of the issue is and we can consider the matter further. Beyond
that, it is open to you to complain to the Information Commissioner’s
Office ([3]www.ico.org.uk).

Yours sincerely

Freedom of Information/Data Protection Team

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

PHSO CityGate

47-51 Mosley Street

Manchester

M2 3HQ

E: [4][PHSO request email]

W: [5]www.ombudsman.org.uk

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References

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Dear Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman,

OK, thank you for that.
Yours faithfully,
C Rock