The number of complaints has steadily risen over the past couple of years after the GDPR entered into force. The numbers did not rise in the first quarter of 2020 however due to the pandemic and the significant disruption to the work of many data controllers.

However, 36,607 new complaints were received during 2020/21. That is only a slight decrease from the 38,514 in 2019/20.

The ICO closed 31,055 cases, meaning that around 84% of cases were dealt with within six months of receipt. The new casework management system and staff returning to the office should enable the ICO to process the complaints quicker than before.