Complaints Policy Introduction St Petrocs treats complaints very seriously. We will respond to complaints, whether formal or informal, in a positive and constructive way to ensure that they are dealt with promptly and satisfactorily. We will use complaints as an opportunity to learn and improve our services, and we are committed to ensuring that no complainant is subject to any reprisal for making a complaint. Depending on the nature of your complaint, our team will direct it to the appropriate department (Residential services, Non-Residential services, Supporters, Volunteers and members of the public). This policy applies to all customers, clients, residents, stakeholders, and members of the public who wish to make a complaint regarding our services, staff, or operations. This policy has two main functions: To provide dissatisfied individuals with a mechanism for seeking redress To audit and check our own performance and provide feedback to see how we can improve and maintain our services and relationships with the people we work with, supporters, volunteers and the community. (Our complaints policy and processes fully comply with the Housing Ombudsman Service Complaint Handling Code 2024 and applies to all Service Users and Visitors. The Complaint Handling Code can be seen at: https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/02.-Complaint-Handling-Code-24.pdf) Definition 1.1 A complaint is defined as ‘an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting a client, resident, stakeholder, supporter, volunteer of member of the community. 1.2 A complainant does not need to use the word ‘complaint’ for it to be treated as such 1.3 Any complaints made on behalf of the clients, residents, by a third party or representative, will be treated the same as a complaint made by the client or resident themselves 1.4 An expression of dissatisfaction with services made through a survey is not defined as a complaint, although clients or residents are able to pursue a complaint raised within surveys. Complaints Process 2.1 If you are unhappy with any part of the services provided, please speak to a member of St Petrocs staff, if you feel able to. We will endeavour to rectify the issue at this point but will advise you on how to make a complaint if you remain unsatisfied. We will endeavour to keep a log of all reported issues on our system. 2.2 We have a Complaints Form available which can be requested from our staff team but also accept complaints via any other methods. If you need any assistance or reasonable adjustments to make a complaint, please let a member of staff know and we will accommodate this. You can also text a member of staff, phone St Petrocs, Peat House on 01872 260948 or email our inbox [email protected] 2.3 You can request to be represented or accompanied by someone else at any stage of your complaint. If you would like to be represented, we would need your permission to share personal details relating to the complaint with your chosen representative 2.4 Any complaints regarding third parties / contractors working for / on behalf of St Petrocs can be reported to us via this process. We will then raise the complaint with them and respond to you as per this policy, endeavouring to keep to the 10 / 20 working days response time. 2.5 For a simplified view of the complaints process, please see Appendices A & B. Stage 1 3.1 We will acknowledge, define, and log your complaint within 5 working days of its receipt. Your complaint will be sent to the relevant person, usually a service manager, who is not involved with the complaint you are making. 3.2 We will issue a full response to the complaint once we have an answer and within 10 working days of acknowledgement. If there are outstanding actions to resolve the complaint, we will action these promptly and provide updates to you on progress. 3.3 If your complaint is complex, we may need extra time to review it and respond. If we need to extend these timescales, we will inform you of how long it will be until you have a response, with an extension of no more than 10 working days. We will also provide you with the contact details for the Housing Ombudsman/Charity Complaints Commission. 3.4 If you have any additional complaints during this stage, they will either be: Incorporated into the Stage 1 response, if they are related and no response has been issued yet Logged as a new complaint, if they are unrelated, the response has been issued, or it would unreasonably delay the response to the original complaint Our response to your complaint will include, in plain language: The complaint stage The complaint definition Which aspects of the complaint we are / are not responsible for The decision made on the complaint The reason for the decision made Where appropriate and permissible the details of any remedials to the complaint Where appropriate and permissible the details of any outstanding actions and expected timeframes The details of how to escalate the matter to Stage 2 if you are not satisfied with our response 3.5 We hope that your complaint will be resolved to your satisfaction during Stage 1 and will close it in our logs if so. Stage 2 4.1 If you are not satisfied following our Stage 1 response, we will progress your complaint to Stage 2. 4.2 We will acknowledge, define, and log requests for a Stage 2 response within 5 working days of receipt of the escalation request. You will not be required to provide a reason for requesting a Stage 2 response, but we will make reasonable efforts to understand why you are not satisfied with our Stage 1 response. 4.3 We will issue a final response to your complaint within 20 working days of acknowledgement. Stage 2 responses will be reviewed and responded to by another manager (usually more senior) with no prior involvement in your complaint. If there are outstanding actions to resolve the complaint, we will action these promptly and provide updates to you on progress. 4.4 If your complaint is complex, we may need extra time to review it and respond. If we need to extend these timescales, we will inform you of how long it will be until you have a response, with an extension of no more than 20 working days. We will also provide you with the contact details for the Housing Ombudsman or Charity Complaints Commission. 4.5 Our response to your complaint will include, in plain language: The complaint stage The complaint definition Which aspects of the complaint we are / are not responsible for The decision made on the complaint The reason for the decision made Where appropriate and permissible the details of any remedials to the complaint Where appropriate and permissible the details of any outstanding actions and expected timeframes Stage 2 is our final response to the complaint. If you are not satisfied with our final response, you can escalate your complaint to the Housing Ombudsman or the Charity Complaints Commission using the details in Section 7. Exclusions 5.1 We will always endeavour to accept and respond to every complaint we receive. However, we may refuse a complaint in situations where: The issue giving rise to the complaint occurred over 12 months ago Legal proceedings have begun The complaint is on matters that have previously been considered under the complaints policy We will consider the individual circumstances of each complaint before we make a decision and apply discretion where needed If we do not accept a complaint, we will provide an explanation on the reasons for this decision, and you have the right to challenge this with the Housing Ombudsman or the Charity Complaints Commission. Our Obligations During the complaints process we will: Deal with complaints on their merits, act independently, and have an open mind Give everyone a fair chance to explain their complaint Carefully review all evidence and information to make a fully informed decision Ensure there are no conflicts of interest in the process Be accountable and transparent throughout the whole process Keep a full record of every complaint, including details, dates, all correspondence, and any supporting documentation Ensure there are no reprisals against any complainants for the complaint they have made Make visible this policy and information regarding how to raise complaints, and encourage complainants to use it when things have gone wrong Make reasonable adjustments for complainants under the Equality Act 2010 and keep a record of the adjustments and any disabilities disclosed Not refuse to escalate a complaint without valid reason (as set out in ‘Exclusions’) Acknowledge and remedy any situation where something has gone wrong Regularly review complaints received and use them to improve our services External Regulatory Bodies & contact details You have the right to contact the Housing Ombudsman at any point in the complaints process, including after our final response, if your complaint is housing related. The contact details for the Housing Ombudsman are: Online Form: https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/residents/make-a-complaint/ Email: [email protected] Phone: 0300 111 3000 Post: Housing Ombudsman Service, PO Box 1484, Unit D, Preston, PR2 0ET The Charity Commission is the primary regulator for charities in England and Wales, ensuring they operate effectively and ethically. It's responsible for registering and regulating charities, and it also handles complaints about their conduct and standards of service Online Form: https://www.gov.uk/complain-about-charity Phone: 0300 066 9197 Post: Charity Commission PO Box 221, Bootle L20 7YX The Fundraising Regulator is an independent regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, ensuring public protection and high standards in fundraising. They set and maintain the Code of Fundraising Practice, investigate complaints, and work with other bodies to build trust in fundraising. Online form: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/complaints/make-complaint Email: [email protected] Phone: 0300 999 3407 Post: Fundraising Regulator, 50 Featherstone Street, London, EC1Y 8RT Manage Cookie Preferences