Section 6: Requirements: complaints referred to the Ombudsman
28.This section provides that a listed authority can refer a complaint made to it to the Ombudsman but only if it is made by a person who would have been entitled to make that complaint directly to the Ombudsman. The complaint must also have been made to the authority within a year from the day that the person aggrieved first had notice of the matter complained of. Any such referral must be in writing and the referral must occur before the end of one year beginning on the day on which the complaint was made to the listed authority. Under section 2(4) the Ombudsman may, for the purposes of accepting a referred complaint, disregard either (or both) of those time-limits (as described above) if he/she considers that it is reasonable to do so.
