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Chapter 1
Access to the complaints procedure
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1.1
Your complaints system should be easy to access and well advertised. There is little point
in having a system if no one knows what it is or how to use it. People need to know how to
complain and to feel it is worthwhile. You should encourage compliments and comments from
users as well as complaints. Your organisation should be looking to increase the number of
dissatisfied users who complain. This will show that your users believe you take
complaints seriously.
1.2
In this chapter we cover:
 | what the user needs to know; |
| how to tell the user about your complaints
procedure; |
| how to remove barriers and provide access for all; |
| how to provide support and advice; and |
| the importance of checking whether your procedures
are working. |
What the user needs to know
1.3
When making a complaint, it is helpful if a person has certain information.
How they can help you
You should tell people not only what their rights are as receivers of a public service,
but also how they can help you. You can do this best in a clear statement when they first
contact your organisation.
Service standards
This means the standards that people can expect from your service, and the circumstances
in which they can make a complaint. If people expect little or do not understand what your
service offers, they will not complain. This will lead to an artificially low number of
complaints.
How to complain
This means giving names, addresses and phone numbers of staff or sections to contact with
any complaint. (A photograph of the person to contact can be helpful.) It also means
assuring people that they can make a complaint in person, by phone or in writing.
The stages of the complaints procedures
You need to explain the different stages of your complaints procedure, including the
review stage and what people can do if they are still not happy with your reply. This is
where you should give information about the role of the relevant ombudsman and how a user
can complain to them.
Manchester Housing's customer complaints form
includes a tear-off slip for the person complaining to send in. The rest of the form,
which the customer keeps, has a section called What will happen to my complaint? This
summarises the complaints procedure, including deadlines for receiving a reply. At the
bottom of the page is a section called Keeping track of your complaint. The
person complaining can fill in the date they sent in the complaint, the date it was
acknowledged, and so on.
Contact: Jeannie Parr, Manchester Housing, Manchester City Council.
Phone: 0161 234 4729. |
Deadlines for receiving a reply
You should tell people when they can expect to receive:
| a letter acknowledging their complaint; |
| a full reply to their complaint; |
| updates if you cannot provide a full reply on time. |
The possible result
You should explain how you will sort out the problem. Always try to base your solution on
what the person complaining wants.
Telling the user about your complaints procedure
1.4
You should tell all your users how to complain. You should also consider those who do not
use your service but who might nevertheless have a reason to complain - for example,
residents living near a school playground who may be concerned about the noise.
First contact
1.5
When a user first contacts you, you should provide information about your standards of
service and how to complain. You should draw up a programme to improve levels of awareness
among your service users. All your users should be aware of your service standards and
complaints procedure. |
|
East Lothian Council have recently introduced a
Feedback Policy. As part of this, they have developed 'business cards' which their manual
workers can give to people who complain to them in the streets. (The council know that
they receive many complaints in this way.) The cards give a point of contact and let
people know that the council want to hear what they have to say.
Contact: Susan Yorkston, Corporate Feedback Co-ordinator, East Lothian Council.
Phone: 01620 827708. |
Leaflets and posters
1.6
Leaflets and posters can spell out many of the details users need to know, and reinforce
the messages given at first contact. Many services produce a leaflet combined with a form
for people to send in comments, compliments or complaints.
1.7
You should make sure that leaflets are clearly presented and written in user-friendly
language. They should be easily available and targeted carefully. Posters should be
displayed in public places. You should update leaflets and posters regularly to make sure
that they do not contain out-of-date information.
| Cardiff County Council's customer complaints leaflet
contains a simple flow chart: How your complaint
will be dealt with
Stage 1
You will receive an acknowledgement within 7 working days
of receipt of your complaint, telling you who is dealing with it. A full reply will follow
within 14 working days of receipt, or you will be advised of any delay. |
Stage 2
If you are not happy with the outcome, please write back
within one month (there's no need to send a new form). A Departmental Complaints Manager
will acknowledge your letter within 7 working days of its receipt, and arrange a review of
your complaint. You will be sent a full reply within 14 working days of receiving your
letter, or be advised of any delay.
You will receive an acknowledgement within 7 working days
of receipt of your complaint, telling you who is dealing with it. A full reply will follow
within 14 working days of receipt, or you will be advised of any delay. |
Stage 3
If you are still unhappy with the situation, please write
back to the Departmental Complaints Manager within one month. Your complaint will then be
referred to the Director of Legal and Administrative Services for a final review. You will
be sent an acknowledgement within 7 working days of receiving your letter and a full reply
will be sent within 14 working days of its receipt or you will be advised of any delay. |
Contact: David Collins, Policy Review,
Cardiff County Council. Phone: 029 20 872572. |
Newsletters and booklets
1.8
You can provide information about how to complain in any newsletter, information sheet or
booklet your organisation produces.
The media
1.9
You can use the media to provide information for your users and to attract other users.
Articles in local newspapers and sessions on local radio or television give staff the
opportunity to discuss problems that people may have with a service, and what they should
do if they have a complaint.
East Renfrewshire Council started a 'Let us Know'
campaign in October 1997 to encourage customers to comment, compliment or complain to the
council. The campaign was advertised in the local press and with posters and leaflets with
a freepost reply form. The leaflets are available in all council offices and in several
other places throughout East Renfrewshire.
Contact: Stuart Graham, Corporate Policy Officer, Chief Executive's Department, East
Renfrewshire Council.
Phone: 0141 577 3162. |
1.10
You may have to deal with a media enquiry if your complaints procedure breaks down. As a
general rule, your press office or spokesperson should handle all media enquiries. Make
sure you know how you can easily contact them.
1.11
Each complaint will be different and will need to be dealt with individually. You can deal
with some media enquiries about complaints at local level, but your press office will need
to handle more serious cases. In all cases you should first get advice from your
press office or spokesperson.
Telephone directories
1.12
More people complain by phone than in writing. You should include contact numbers in
relevant national or local phone directories. A freephone number makes it even easier for
people to complain and avoids discriminating against those who have difficulty calling
into an office.
In 1993 the City of Bradford Metropolitan District
Council launched a 'Council Contact Helpline' with an easy to remember number. People
could call the number to make complaints, ask for services or get information about the
whole range of council services. Since then, the council has extended the service to
include several emergency and out-of-hours services. And they have installed a
voice-processing system so that they can deal with more services direct. (Before they
could only provide information on how to access these services.) Lines are now staffed 24
hours a day, every day of the year. Staff are trained to handle complaints that need to go
through the formal procedure. Small-scale customer surveys and recent public consultation
through neighbourhood forums have shown that the public support and are satisfied with the
new service.
Contact: Helen Clipsom, Directorate Complaints Officer, City of Bradford Metropolitan
District Council. Phone: 01274 757858. |
Helpdesks
1.13
You can give your customers a positive impression of your Organisation by providing a
visible point of contact such as an enquiry desk. The person staffing the desk should be
able to receive and take action on complaints, as well as simply providing information.
Letters and comments cards
1.14
You can use the envelopes in which you send letters to members of the public, or the
letters themselves, to display a contact name and phone number. Or you can provide a
freepost comments and complaints card each time you provide a service.
Logos
1.15
You might consider developing a logo which the public will immediately associate with your
helpline or contact point for enquiries and complaints.
The City of Edinburgh Council City Development
Department has established a quick and convenient approach for members of the public who
want to report road and lighting problems. Clarence the lion appears on road signs
throughout Lothian as a partnership between Edinburgh and its neighbouring councils. The
logo encourages callers to use a freephone system to report faults in the network. The
calls are received at a control desk where trained staff can deal with them quickly. Many
callers realise that they can help to improve services by using this method, which frees
technical staff and reduces the number of written complaints. The system has proved so
successful that it is now being used by other councils.
Clarence also advertises a traveline using the same freephone number. This line provides
information about local public transport services.
Contact: Keith Rimmer, Head of Transport and Communications, City Development Department,
City of Edinburgh Council. Phone: 0131 469 3769. |
Removing barriers - access for all
1.16
People will only complain if they feel that you listen to complaints and act on them. You
should state clearly that:
| you welcome complaints; |
| you will investigate complaints thoroughly and fairly; |
| wherever possible, you will find a remedy; and |
| you will use information from complaints to improve your
services. |
Removing fear
1.17
People may not complain if they fear your service will discriminate against them in
future. This is particularly true if the relationship between the user and your service
puts the user in a vulnerable position, for example a child at school, or an elderly
person in a local authority home.
1.18
You should:
| make clear to users that they will not suffer as a result
of any complaint; |
| provide a confidential channel for complaining, which
meets the needs of vulnerable groups; and |
| set up internal procedures for monitoring complaints,
which guarantee that discrimination cannot take place. This might involve:
 | monitoring the services provided to people who have
complained; |
| giving people the opportunity to complain to staff who are
not directly providing the service; and |
| carrying out surveys of people who have made a complaint. |
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Meeting special needs
1.19
Complaints systems should allow for people with special difficulties. Your written
information should, for example, reflect the needs of people whose first language is not
English and people with reading difficulties. You should consider other forms of
communication for people who cannot read at all.
Dealing with disabled people
1.20
Your complaints procedures should be easy for disabled people to use. You must also take
account of your duties under Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA),
which deals with disabled people's access to goods, facilities and services.
1.21
You should consider the means by which you communicate with disabled people, in particular
those with impaired sight or hearing or learning disabilities. The Central Office of
Information have produced The Informability Manual (ISBN 0-11-702038-9), which
provides detailed guidance on making information more accessible in the light of the DDA.
1.22
For a free booklet, Disability Discrimination Act - What service providers need
to know, or other information about The Disability Discrimination Act 1995, contact:
DDA Information Line
Freepost MID02164
Stratford-upon-Avon
CU37 9BR
Phone: 0345 622 633.
Textphone: 0345 622 644.
1.23
DDA Line publications and other information on the Act can also be accessed through the
Internet at www.disability.gov.uk
Providing support and advice
1.24
Users of public services are not all confident, and may not feel able to make a complaint
without some support. You need to make sure that you provide this support where necessary.
Good practice also involves telling people how they can get help from outside your
organisation, for example from a Citizens Advice Bureau.
Support from within your organisation
1.25
You should have a named member or members of staff who are responsible for helping people
with their complaints. This does not mean that you have to recruit new staff: the job can
be shared, or an existing job can be adapted. You should give information about this
person to members of the public.
1.26
The member of staff responsible should:
| be fully familiar with and able to give advice on your
complaints procedure; |
| help users to complain if necessary; |
| channel the complaint to the right person to deal with it;
l report to managers on any failures in the complaints procedure; and |
| be available for users by phone. |
Nearly half of the people in the Newham Healthcare
Trust area are from ethnic minority groups. The trust uses 'health advocates' to help
people from ethnic minorities make complaints. This might involve translating letters for
them or arranging meetings with them to try to solve problems. The Health Advocate Service
Manager can call on six full-time and three part-time health advocates, as well as around
25 staff who help out when needed. The service covers 15 languages.
Contact: Heather Lawrence, Business Manager (Corporate Services), Newham Healthcare NHS
Trust.
Phone: 020 8 472 1444. |
Support from outside your organisation
1.27
You should tell people that they can ask a friend or relative to help them with a
complaint, or even make it for them, and that this will not affect the way you deal with
their complaint.
1.28
You should also make clear that people can get advice from other organisations. You can
include contact names and addresses for these organisations in your leaflets for the
public and guidance for staff. These organisations might include Citizens Advice Bureaux,
user groups such as council tenants' associations, and voluntary and charitable
organisations such as Help the Aged and SCOPE. You might also include the names and
addresses of local councillors.
Checking it's working
1.29
You should check whether your systems are really easy to use, by asking those who have not
made complaints as well as those who have. You can do this by:
| setting up focus groups or customer panels to ask people
what they would find most helpful in making it easy to complain; and |
| carrying out postal or telephone surveys. |
| Access checklist |
| Area of concern
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Your current
position |
Action you
need to take |
| Setting out service standards |
| Telling the user about your
complaints procedure |
| Removing barriers to
complaining |
| Explaining the stages of your
complaints procedure |
| Meeting special needs |
| Providing support and advice
for those who need help |
| Getting users' views |
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