The number of serious complaints about Hounslow Council leapt by nearly half last year, new figures reveal.
The Local Government Ombudsman dealt with 218 grievances from disgruntled residents during 2007/8 - up from 149 the previous year.
Nearly a quarter of those concerned the Blenheim Centre, the controversial development just off Hounslow High Street, including nearly 500 flats and a 24-hour Asda.
Residents are still awaiting the ombudsman's verdict on that project, which is not expected to be announced for some months.
Just 39 referrals were settled in the complainants' favour but the council still had to shell out more than £25,000 in compensation.
The biggest payout was just under £5,000 for an adult care client whose payments were delayed and whose needs were not properly assessed.
Other successful complaints, discussed at last Thursday's meeting of the council's Standards Committee, included:
• a family of five who were left living in one room for over two years because the housing chiefs thought they had refused offers of accommodation
• an elderly tenant who was left waiting more than six months for inspectors to determine the cause of damp in his home
• a £3,500 payout to tenants plagued by antisocial behaviour from their neighbour, who was in temporary accommodation
• £6,600 compensation for the parents of a child with special needs whose requirements were underestimated for more than a year.
The council received nearly 3,000 complaints in total last year, most of which were dealt with at 'stage one', by the relevant department, or stage two, by the head of that department.
The ombudsman only considered 'stage three' cases, where residents were still unhappy with the council's response after the first two hurdles. Many of those grievances were settled between the two parties before a ruling was necessary.
Since April this year, 'stage three' complaints have been handled by a panel of councillors in a bid to reduce the number of cases reaching the ombudsman.
