Complaints Procedure
POLICY STATEMENT
Stepping Stones North Wales (SSNW) is committed to providing the highest level of service in all of its work across all projects and with clients, external agency partners and member of the public. SSNW welcomes opportunities to resolve any concerns informally, however it also recognises its obligation to provide clear guidelines about formal complaints and how they should be made. Complaints give us an opportunity to improve our services, procedures and governance. The Board of SSNW will monitor the nature of complaints, and the outcomes of investigations, in order to improve the quality of our service provision.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this procedure is to make clear how any individual wishing to make a formal complaint about SSNW should proceed. This procedure also makes clear how SSNW will respond to any formal complaint.
SCOPE
This policy applies to any individual, other than a member of SSNW’s staff or volunteers, who wishes to complain about any aspect of SSNW’s work or actions.
COMPLAINTS FROM A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC
SSNW aims to develop successful partnerships with external agencies and members of the public. If any member of the public wishes to raise a complaint about any aspect of SSNW’s services or conduct they should follow the guidelines contained within this procedure. SSNW will respond to all complaints in a fair and confidential manner.
COMPLAINTS FROM A SSNW CLIENT
SSNW is committed to providing the highest quality of service to all our clients. If a client is not satisfied with the quality of service provided, they have the right to complain and should follow the guidelines contained within this procedure.
We will respond to all complaints promptly in a fair and confidential manner. However, there may be occasions where SSNW may be required to disclose the details of a complaint to a third party. Complainants will be advised where this is necessary.
We will ensure that no client will, in any way, be disadvantaged as a result of making a complaint.
PROCEDURE FOR MAKING A FORMAL COMPLAINT
Any complaint should be made within three months of an issue arising.
The complaint should be raised, in the first instance, with the member of staff involved. The member of staff should inform the Chief Executive of the complaint.
If the issue is not resolved satisfactorily a formal complaint may be made. The formal complaint should be completed using the relevant link on the SSNW webpage: www.steppingstonesnorthwales.co.uk/complaints.
This will automatically send an alert to the CEO, the Clinical Lead and the Finance and Business Support Manager. This will allow the Board to also track all complaints made to SSNW.
The complainant should supply a name and address for all communication and must provide full details of the nature of the complaint. If a complainant does not have access to email complaints can be made in writing, sent to Stepping Stones North Wales, 59 King St, Wrexham LL11 1HR, marked as Private and Confidential.
The complainant will receive an acknowledgement of the formal complaint within five days of it being received.
The Chief Executive will investigate the complaint with his senior leadership team and report findings within 15 working days or request an extension to this period, providing an explanation of why this is necessary. Where an investigation extends beyond 20 working days, the Chief Executive will inform the complainant, in writing, of the expected completion date.
Further to producing the report, the Chief Executive will respond to the client within a further five working days and will indicate what action has been taken, or is proposed, to resolve the complaint. Alternatively, if the complaint is not upheld, the reasons for that decision will be fully explained.
Where a complainant is not satisfied with the outcome, they may appeal the decision by writing to the Chair of the Board [email protected]. The appeal must be lodged, in writing, no later than 10 working days after the initial outcome has been received.
The complainant will receive an acknowledgement of the appeal within five working days of it being received by the Chair of the Board. The Chair will investigate the appeal and will inform the complainant of the outcome of the appeal within twenty working days from the date of acknowledgement.
Where an appeal extends beyond twenty working days, the Chair will inform the complainant, in writing, of the expected completion date.
THE DECISION OF THE CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES IS FINAL AND BINDING
If the complaint involves either the Chief Executive the formal complaint may be made, in writing, to the Chair of the Board of Trustees. All other timescales indicated in these procedures will remain the same.
Any subsequent appeal should be lodged with the Chair of the Board. In these circumstances the decision of the Chair is final and binding.
In all cases the documentary evidence gathered and stored will remain confidential to those involved.
This procedure will be reviewed in line with the process for the revision of SSNW Policies and Procedures.