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5.1 Encouraging users to give you feedback (compliments and general comments as
well as complaints) will help them feel that your service is committed to listening to
them. Monitoring this information can help you spot problem areas and give you general
feedback. You will need good procedures to help you deal with individual problems and to
give you information about trends, problem areas and so on.
Points to think about
 | Procedures: have a clear policy and procedure for dealing with comments,
complaints and suggestions. Involve staff and users (including elected representatives,
school governors etc) in producing it and monitoring its effects. |
| Information: give users straightforward information about how they can comment or
complain - who to, what will happen next, why you want them to tell you what they think.
Remember to include information about any appropriate independent review mechanism (for
example, an ombudsman). |
| Presentation: present the information clearly - use plain language, and consider
font size and layout. Include information on bills, leave a card with customers when you
visit, have a 'suggestions' line, think about using the Internet ' try to be creative. |
| Choice: not everyone wants to make complaints or comments in writing; make sure
users can talk to someone either face-to-face or by phone. Make sure also that staff treat
oral complaints in the same way as written ones. |
| People with special needs: think about the needs of people:
 | with impaired sight or hearing or learning disabilities; |
| whose first language is not English or who cannot read at all; and |
| who might have problems with physical access (eg people in wheelchairs, people with
pushchairs). |
|
| Publicity: publicity is important. Send out details when you contact your users,
put posters where they are likely to see them, circulate information to advice agencies,
voluntary groups and other interested people. And feed back to users so they know they
have been heard. |
| Staff: make sure that staff understand and know your comments and complaints
procedures and how they should respond - recognise that you may get more complaints as a
result of your procedures being easier to use. |
| Encouragement: encourage a 'no-blame' culture, and approach criticism and
comments in a constructive and positive way. |
| Reporting: publish information about complaints. This lets |
| users know:
| how you are performing against standards; |
| that you take complaints seriously and that it is worth making a complaint; and |
| what improvements you have made as a result of complaints. |
|
Pros
| Gives free feedback on services. |
| Easy to set up. |
| Helps you identify recurring problems. |
| Can save time and money. |
| Shows users you are open to comments and complaints and serious about putting things
right. |
| Gives you information about your service's weaknesses and strengths. |
| Provides both quantitative and qualitative information. |
Cons
| Presentational. Complaints may increase if you make your complaints handling system
good, and if you publicise it well. |
| Not representative. Some users are reluctant to complain (or compliment), so don't
assume that all the problems/successes will be highlighted. |
| Essentially reactive to existing systems: gives less insight into potential changes. |
| Can be difficult to present complaints information in a positive way |
Costs: cheap, as you are using existing resources.
Use to: get detailed information from individual users.
| Frederick Bird Primary School, Coventry ‘Freddies’ is
an inner-city school serving a community rich in cultural diversity, with 500 pupils aged
3-11. Worry boxes were introduced two years ago as a means of helping pupils share with
their teachers problems that they did not want discussed in class or in front of other
pupils. This is especially important when dealing with issues such as bullying. Children
put a ticket with their name or initials into the box placed in a neutral space in each
year group area. At the end of the day when the pupils have gone, teachers check the box
and arrange to find a quiet time to speak to any children who wish it as soon as possible.
Pupils appreciate the confidential nature of the worry boxes, and teachers have found them
a valuable tool.
Contact: Jon Salway tel: 024 76 221920 fax: 024 76 228026 |
| First Community Health NHS Trust has a free
phone number for comments, suggestions, complaints or compliments called ‘Are You
Satisfied?’. All staff have received information and training on the ‘Are You
Satisfied?’ procedures, and all new staff receive training during the Trust’s
induction programme. A ‘business-size’ card is available to people using the
service to make it easy for them to comment, suggest, complain or be complimentary about
the service they receive.
Mid Staffordshire Community Health Council has been invited, since 1995, by the Trust,
as an independent third party, to contact those complainants who wish to be contacted to
assess how the Trust has addressed their complaint and the sensitivity and clarity of
explanations given to them. This process enables the Trust continuously to improve
complaint outcomes based on first-hand experiences.
Contact: Alan L Sharville tel: 01785 222888 ext 5488 fax: 01785 221499 |
Recognise that you may get more complaints as a
result of your procedures being easier to use.
|
