The Legal Services Board (LSB) has announced Richard Blakeway as its preferred candidate for the post of Chair of the Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) after an open competition. The OLC is the Board of the Legal Ombudsman for England and Wales.
The LSB’s recommendation has been approved by the Minister of State for Justice, Sarah Sackman KC MP.
Mr Blakeway will now appear before the Justice Select Committee for pre-appointment scrutiny in March 2026. Subject to the Committee’s scrutiny, he will succeed Elisabeth Davies, whose term of office ends on 31 March 2026.
About Richard Blakeway
Richard was appointed as Housing Ombudsman in 2019. He has 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. The Ombudsman has been at the forefront of investigating hazards, especially damp and mould, and raising sector complaint standards with the introduction of a statutory Complaint Handling Code. It has increased transparency to encourage sector learning and culture change, publishing casework data and decisions.
Previously, Richard was chair of the Homes for London board and appointed Deputy Mayor for Housing when investment and land regeneration powers were devolved to the Greater London Authority. He oversaw the delivery of new affordable housing and the redevelopment of around 600 hectares of public land for homes, workspace and schools. He also chaired a board which brought councils, charities and public services together to address rough sleeping, including £10m a year investment into hostels and outreach services.
Richard is a former chair of the Ombudsman Association and has been an election observer in Somaliland and Ukraine. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and sits on the Administrative Justice Council. He was also an adviser in the Number 10 Policy Unit.
Other board roles include currently serving on the board of The British Library, where he also sits on the audit and risk and capital projects committees, and previously the boards of the Chartered Institute of Housing and government regeneration agency, Homes England.