Queensland Ombudsman

What Queensland Ombudsman does

Queensland Ombudsman is a Queensland Government statutory office established in 1974 that investigates complaints about the administrative actions and decisions of Queensland state government departments, local councils, public authorities, and non-government entities delivering public services. The Office operates under the Ombudsman Act 2001 and reports to the Queensland Parliament through the Justice, Integrity and Community Safety Committee, with Anthony Reilly currently serving as both Queensland Ombudsman and Inspector of Detention Services. Headquartered at Level 19, 53 Albert Street, Brisbane, the Office employs 51–100 staff and provides services free of charge to Queensland citizens 24/7 via an online complaint portal, phone, and mail, with accessibility support for hearing-impaired, non-English-speaking, and disabled users.

The Office's core products and services comprise three statutory functions: complaint investigation under the Ombudsman Act 2001, detention inspection under the Inspector of Detention Services Act 2022 (covering prisons, youth detention centres, watch-houses, and work camps, with full operations commencing 1 July 2023), and public interest disclosure oversight under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010. Supporting these are add-on products including the 'Good Decisions – Essentials' and 'Public Interest Disclosures – Essentials' self-paced training modules, the Good Decisions Resources suite, annual Casebooks, human rights complaints handling in coordination with the Queensland Human Rights Commission, and community engagement resources in multiple formats (Auslan, audio description, Easy Read). The Office also publishes investigative reports, detention inspection reports, and quarterly newsletters (Perspectives, Community Perspective, Inspector's News).

The business model is government appropriations-based: the Office does not generate commercial revenue and charges no fees to users. Its 'customers' in the service-recipient sense are Queensland citizens (making complaints), Queensland Government agencies (subject to investigation), and detention facilities (subject to inspection), while its sole funder is the Queensland Government. Distribution is via direct, barrier-free access channels — self-serve online portal, phone, mail, and outreach via events, webinars, and community presentations — and the model is essentially preventive as well as reactive: investigations feed into publications and training resources aimed at improving public administration decision-making.

Name

Queensland Ombudsman

Legal name

Queensland Ombudsman

Website

https://ombudsman.qld.gov.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Queensland Ombudsman is a Queensland Government statutory office, established in 1974, that investigates complaints against state agencies and local councils, inspects detention facilities, and oversees public interest disclosures. Services are free to citizens and funded through government appropriations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Oversight and Public Administration Investigations

NAICS

Public Administration (92), Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities (9221)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Central Government Policy, Strategy & Performance (incl. OMB-style functions) (BPAIAAAB)

Keywords

• Administrative complaint investigation
• Detention inspection services
• Public interest disclosure
• Government oversight body
• Public administration improvement

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: As a Queensland government agency reporting to Parliament through the Justice, Integrity and Community Safety Committee, the Office is funded through government appropriations. No commercial revenue generation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Queensland Ombudsman is a statutory office that investigates complaints about administrative actions of Queensland Government departments, local councils, public authorities, and non-government entities used to deliver public services. It also inspects and reviews places of detention under the Inspector of Detention Services Act 2022, oversees public interest disclosures under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010, and provides free training and resources to help public sector officers improve decision-making.

Product overview

Queensland Ombudsman is a government oversight body providing a unified portfolio of complaint investigation and public administration improvement services. The core offerings include complaint investigation services under the Ombudsman Act 2001, detention inspection services under the Inspector of Detention Services Act 2022, and public interest disclosure oversight under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010. Supporting these are training modules (Good Decisions – Essentials and Public Interest Disclosures – Essentials), Good Decisions resources, annual Casebooks, human rights complaints handling, and community engagement resources. The organisation works to ensure fair and accountable public administration in Queensland through investigation, inspection, education, and reporting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Complaint Investigation Services Independent investigation of complaints about administrative actions and decisions of Queensland state government departments, local councils, public authorities, and non-government entities used by agencies to deliver public services. Provided free of charge to Queensland residents and community groups under the Ombudsman Act 2001.
• Detention Inspection Services Independent reviews, monitoring and inspections of Queensland places of detention including youth detention centres, adult prisons, work camps, and watch-houses under the Inspector of Detention Services Act 2022. Aimed at promoting humane treatment and preventing harm to detainees.
• Public Interest Disclosure Oversight Statutory oversight of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010, providing guidance on reporting serious wrongdoing in the public sector and protecting whistleblowers. The Office has held this oversight role since 2013.
• Human Rights Complaints Handling Handles complaints about public agencies under the Human Rights Act 2019, working jointly with the Queensland Human Rights Commission on matters requiring specialist human rights expertise.
• Good Decisions – Essentials Training Free self-paced online training module helping Queensland public sector officers use a framework to make fair, defensible and consistent administrative decisions. Takes approximately 1 hour to complete.
• Public Interest Disclosures – Essentials Training Free self-paced online training module providing an overview of what a public interest disclosure is, how to make one, and the protections and responsibilities that apply. Takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Quantifiable outcome

• 18 case studies in Casebook 2026 demonstrating improved decision-making outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Queensland Human Rights Commission (QHRC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative relationship for handling human rights complaints. QHRC handles complaints under the Human Rights Act 2019, while the Queensland Ombudsman handles complaints under the Ombudsman Act 2001. Coordination required when complaints may fall under both jurisdictions.
• Other Ombudsman OfficesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorks with other ombudsman offices, integrity agencies, and complaint-handling bodies throughout Queensland for information sharing and best practices.
• Justice, Integrity and Community Safety Committee (JICSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParliamentary committee that monitors and reviews the performance of the Office. The Ombudsman reports to Parliament through JICSC and meets with senior officers at least annually.
• Official VisitorsminorOthersOfficial Visitors under the Corrective Services Act 2006 work alongside but separately from the Inspector of Detention Services. These existing mechanisms remain unchanged by the IDS Act.
• Community VisitorsminorOthersCommunity Visitors under the Youth Justice Act 1992 and Public Guardian Act 2014 provide additional oversight of youth detention. The Inspector's functions do not duplicate these existing mechanisms.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Western Australian Ombudsman: Western Australia's state ombudsman with a comparable complaint investigation, administrative review and complaint-handler training mandate; parallels Queensland in statutory model and oversight breadth.
• Commonwealth Ombudsman: Australia's federal ombudsman handling complaints about Australian Government agencies, with overlapping practice areas (complaint investigation, PID oversight, detention inspection through the former Immigration Detention Inspector role). Direct functional peer at the national tier.
• ACT Ombudsman: Australian Capital Territory ombudsman handling complaints against ACT Government agencies and providing training and resources — directly comparable at the territory-government tier.
• Northern Territory Ombudsman: Northern Territory's ombudsman and PID oversight office with an analogous state-jurisdiction mandate, including complaint investigation and review of administrative actions — closely comparable in scope.
• South Australian Ombudsman: South Australia's state ombudsman investigates complaints against state agencies, local councils and public authorities, and provides training and resources — directly analogous in function to the Queensland Ombudsman at smaller scale.
• Victorian Ombudsman: Victoria's state ombudsman investigates complaints against state government departments, councils and public entities, and conducts own-motion investigations — a close functional peer to the Queensland Ombudsman in a similarly sized Australian jurisdiction.
• NSW Ombudsman: The New South Wales state-level ombudsman office with an analogous mandate to investigate complaints about NSW public sector agencies and to undertake related oversight and training functions; directly comparable in scope and statutory model to the Queensland Ombudsman.
• Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services (WA): Independent Western Australian body that inspects prisons, detention centres and youth custody — directly comparable to the Queensland Ombudsman's Inspector of Detention Services function for detention oversight and humane treatment review.
• Tasmanian Ombudsman: Tasmania's state-level ombudsman and PID oversight agency with a similar complaints, investigations and good-decisions training portfolio; smaller jurisdiction but functionally equivalent.

Broad incumbents

• Australian Human Rights Commission: National human rights body with broader human-rights complaint jurisdiction that intersects with the Queensland Ombudsman's Human Rights Act 2019 complaint-handling; an adjacent oversight body rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@queenslandombudsman5593/videos
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/office-of-the-queensland-ombudsman

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Queensland Ombudsman