Complaints about services

Complaints procedure

Torridge District Council is committed to providing high quality services.

From time to time there will be occasions when our service, or the way in which it is provided, falls short of your expectations. When this happens, we need you to tell us so that we can try and put thing right and improve our service. Our complaints procedure complies with the Local Government Ombudsman Complaint Handling code.

We want to -

• make it easy for you to complain.
• ensure your complaint gets to the right person.
• deal with it promptly.
• put a wrong - right!

We promise to -

• take your complaint seriously.
• treat you with courtesy.
• investigate your complaint fully and promptly.
• provide you with a full explanation.
• respect your right to take your complaint further if you are not satisfied with the outcome.

There is a difference between a service request and a formal complaint. We may need to ask for more information to clarify which category your complaint falls into.

A service request is defined as "a request that the organisation provides or improves a service, fixes a problem or reconsiders a decision." A complaint of this nature may be passed to the service area to be rectified quickly and not investigated as a formal complaint.

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 action on it's behalf, affecting an individual or group of individuals." We cannot investigate a complaint where there is a separate route of appeal.

We may not formally investigate your complaint if:

• you have not been significantly, personally affected by the issue raised.
• it is a duplicate complaint that has already been through our complaint's procedure.

Ways of making a complaint

There are a number of ways you can make your complaint:

• by using the Online Complaints Form - Customer Self Service | Torridge District Council, which can be emailed or posted on request. TheComplaint form (Word doc, 34 KB) is also available in a word document. Our Complaints leaflet (PDF, 459 KB) is available to print.
• by telephoning 01237 428700.
• by direct email to complaints@torridge.gov.uk

How the process works

Our formal complaints process consists of two separate stages.

Stage 1: Investigated by Service Officer/Manager or Service Improvement Officer

We will acknowledge receipt of a complaint within five working daysand provide a short summary of your complaint and a target date for that response. At this stage we aim to provide a response within 10 working days. If the case is complex, we are able to extend the timescale by up to 10 working days and will inform you of this.

Stage 2: Investigated by Relevant Senior Team Officer/Manager or Service Improvement Officer

If you feel your complaint was not dealt with adequately at stage 1, you can ask for your complaint to be reviewed under stage 2. So that we fully understand why you remain unhappy, we ask that you specify what issues have not been answered satisfactorily and/or why you remain dissatisfied.

We will acknowledge receipt of your stage 2 within five working days and will provide a response within 20 working days. If the case is complex, we are able to extend the timescale by up to 20 working days and will inform you of this.

If you remain dissatisfied following stage 1 and 2, you can consider referring to your complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman. Details of this process can be found on the next page.

If your complaint concerns waste or recycling collections, please email recycling@torridge.gov.uk. For other matters we can resolve quickly, please email customer.services@torridge.gov.uk or call 01237 428700.

Escalating your complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman

If you have been through both stages of our complaints process, you can ask the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman to consider your complaint.

The Ombudsman has issued a Complaint Handling Code which sets out advice and guidance for councils on how to handle complaints. You can find more information about this on the Ombudsman's website (Complaint Handling Code - Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman).

The Ombudsman investigates complaints in a fair and independent way - it does not take sides. It is a free service.

The Ombudsman expects you to have given us chance to deal with your complaint, before you contact them.

There are some limits on what the Ombudsman can look at. For example, the Ombudsman may not consider your complaint if you have not been significantly personally affected by the issue you are raising, or if you have a right of appeal to a court or tribunal.

About the Ombudsman

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman looks at individual complaints about councils and some other organisations providing local public services. It also investigates complaints about all adult social care providers (including care homes and home care agencies) for people who self-fund their care.

Contact

Website: www.lgo.org.uk

Telephone: 0300 061 0614