Action required - prepare now for the SRA's complaints data collection
Anne Austin
Director
Regular readers will recall that we covered the SRA’s complaints questionnaire back in February 2025, when the deadline for submission was fast approaching.
That exercise asked firms to provide detailed information about their complaints procedures, staff awareness, training and recording practices. Now, the SRA has confirmed that a further complaints data collection exercise is coming later this year – and it is worth making sure your firm is ready.
What the SRA wants this time
This exercise is narrower in scope than the 2025 questionnaire, but no less important. The SRA is asking firms to record two specific data points for each complaint received: the date the complaint was received and the date it was closed, resolved or escalated to the Legal Ombudsman. That is it – but only if your systems are already capturing this information consistently and reliably.
If they are not, now is the time to fix that. The notice published on 1 July is the heads-up to get your records in order before that window opens. Further detail on how and when to submit the data will follow from the SRA ahead of the formal launch.
Why this matters beyond the exercise itself
This data collection is not a standalone administrative exercise. It is directly connected to the SRA’s broader and intensifying focus on complaints handling across the profession – including a brand new consultation on proposed new complaints handling rules that opened on 3 July and closes 1 September 2026. We cover that in detail in a separate article this month, but the connection is worth flagging here: the data the SRA collects from firms this year will directly inform how it shapes and enforces those new rules going forward. Firms whose data shows complaints being resolved promptly and consistently will be in a very different position to those whose records tell a less comfortable story.
What to do now
Check that your complaints recording system captures the date each complaint is received and the date it is closed, resolved or escalated to the Legal Ombudsman. Make sure this is happening consistently across the firm – not just in one department or for one type of complaint. And make sure whoever manages complaints day to day understands what is being collected and why.
If you would like support reviewing your complaints recording procedures ahead of the exercise, please do get in touch. This is exactly the kind of thing we are here to help with.