The Office of the Ombudsman has announced that it is helping with research by the University of Newcastle, Australia into the benefits of good complaints-handling in public sector organisations.

Previous research into private sector organisations by the University of Newcastle has revealed that every dollar invested in complaints handling has potential returns of up to $10 for a business.

The research team leader, Professor Tania Sourdin, is reported as saying that understanding the differences between private and public customers will be important factors in the research.

The research aims to help government organisations to improve processes and save money and time as well as engendering greater compliance with government approaches and enhanced perceptions of trust in terms of government decision making and policy departments.

The Office of the Ombudsman is on the steering committee for the research.