The ombudsman who handled the aftermath of the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire has been picked to chair the legal profession's complaints-handler as it staggers under the weight of new business. The Legal Services Board today announced Richard Blakeway as its preferred candidate to chair the Office for Legal Complaints, which oversees the legal ombudsman for England and Wales.
Blakeway, a former housing ombudsman, will succeed Elisabeth Davies, whose term of office ends on 31 March. His appointment has been approved by justice minister Sarah Sackman but is subject to pre-appointment scrutiny next month by the Commons Justice Select Committee. There, he can expect questions about how he will deal with an unprecedented workload: in the first half of 2025/26, the volume of complaints was 26% higher than the same period last year.
Blakeway, a former London deputy mayor for housing, was appointed housing ombudsman in 2019. The LSB announcement notes that in that role, he 'led major changes at the service following the devastating events at Grenfell Tower, including an expansion of its role and powers as part of wider regulatory reform'.
At the Greater London Authority he oversaw the delivery of affordable housing and the redevelopment of around 600 hectares of public land for homes, workspace and schools.
Blakeway's other board roles include currently serving on the board of The British Library and previously the boards of the Chartered Institute of Housing and government regeneration agency, Homes England.
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