Complaints Policy
1 Introduction
1.1 This policy applies to The Hospital of William Parson and seeks to ensure that the complaints process is flexible and responsive to the needs of individual residents to enable them to be heard and understood.
The Hospital of William Parson complies with the Complaint Handling Code (the Code) issued by the Housing Ombudsman Service. All complaints dealt with under this policy will be dealt with in a manner consistent with the Code and the Charity will maintain all records as required by the Code.
Where a complaint response is handled by a third party (e.g. a contractor or managing agent) at any stage, it will form part of the two stage complaints process set out in this policy. Residents will not go through two complaints processes. The Charity will ensure itself that all third parties handle complaints in line with Code, through scrutiny and oversight within its annual report and self-assessment.
1.2 A complaint is defined as: “an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions, or lack of action by the Hospital of William Parson, its trustees, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents”.
1.3 The word “complaint” does not need to be used expressly for the matter to be considered a complaint. Whenever a resident expresses dissatisfaction the managing agents actin on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will give them the option to make a complaint. Complaints made by residents may be made by the resident’s carer, family members or a representative of a resident and these must be handled in line with this complaints policy.
1.4 Complaints can be made to any staff member of RLHA which is part of the ELM Group who manage Stoke Hospital on behalf of the trustees. This can be done in a number of ways which include:
· Telephone: 01252 356000
· Letter: RLHA, Building 4, Archipelago, Lyon Way, Frimley, GU16 7ER
· Email: customerservices@elmgroup.org.uk
· Face to Face: by speaking to the on-site manager
1.5 A service request is a request from a resident requiring action to be taken to put something right. Service requests are not a complaint. Service requests should be dealt with in accordance with the Residents’ Handbook. Failure to deal appropriately with a service request may lead to the matter being dealt with as a complaint.
1.6 Service requests will be recorded, tracked and monitored to completion by RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson.
1.7 A complaint must be raised when the resident expresses dissatisfaction with the response to their service request, even if the handling of the service request remains ongoing. RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will not stop efforts to address the service request if the resident raises a complaint.
1.8 An expression of dissatisfaction with services made through a resident’s survey is not defined as a complaint, though wherever possible, the person completing the survey should be made aware of how they can pursue a complaint if they wish to.
1.9 In dealing with complaints RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will ensure that:
(a) individuals who raise a complaint are listened to and treated with courtesy and empathy;
(b) residents will never be disadvantaged as a result of raising a complaint;
(c) complaints will be investigated promptly, thoroughly, honestly, and openly; and
(d) confidentiality and data protection policies are fully complied with.
2 Exclusions
2.1 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson must accept a complaint unless there is a valid reason not to do and will ensure the individual circumstances of each complaint are considered.
2.2 The following matters will not be considered as complaints:
(a) The issue giving rise to the complaint occurred over twelve months ago.
(b) Legal proceedings have begun as defined as details of the claim, such as the Claim Form and Particulars of Claim, having been filed at Court.
(c) Matters that have previously been considered under the complaints policy.
2.3 Unless excluded on other grounds, RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will accept complaints referred to them within 12 months of issue occurring or the resident becoming aware of the issue. Where there are good reasons to do so, consideration will also be given to whether to apply discretion to accept complaints made outside the time limit.
2.4 If a complaint is not accepted a detailed explanation will be provided to the resident setting out the reasons why the matter is not suitable for the complaints process and their right to take that decision to the Ombudsman (see details below). The Ombudsman may direct the Hospital of William Parson to take on the complaint.
3 Unreasonable behaviour
We understand that residents can get upset and frustrated when things have gone wrong.
3.1 If the Hospital of William Parson feels a complaint is pursued unreasonably, including any actions or behaviours of the resident/representative, these complaints will be reviewed in line with RLHA’s unreasonable behaviour policy.
3.2 All complaints will be reviewed on an individual basis
3.3 If any restrictions are put in place, these will proportionate and demonstrate regard for the provisions of the Equality Act 2010.
3.4 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will ensure any restrictions will be recorded, monitored and reviewed regularly and the complainant updated following the review.
3.5 Any restrictions in place will not prevent RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson from ensuring the complaint can be taken be through the full complaints process.
4 Accessibility and awareness
4.1 Complaints will be dealt with in a manner that is consistent with the Hospital of William Parson’s Equality & Diversity Policy and the Charity’s duties under the Equality Act 2010.
4.2 If any individual making a complaint wishes the Hospital of William Parson to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate an individual’s particular needs, they, or their representative, can contact RLHA by phone, email or in person to discuss what adjustments may be possible.
4.3 The Hospital of William Parson acknowledges that a high volume of complaints must not be seen as negative, as this can be indicative of a well-publicised and accessible complaints procedure. Low complaint volumes are potentially a sign that residents are unable to complain.
4.4 The complaints handling policy will be listed in the Residents Handbook and published on the Stoke Hospital website. It will also be hand posted to residents annually with the updated Residents Handbook. The Hospital of William Parson will consider all requests to provide the complaints policy in other accessible formats.
4.5 Residents will have the opportunity to have a representative deal with their complaint on their behalf, and to be represented or accompanied at any meeting. We will always follow data protection measures when disclosing any information to a third party.
5 Complaint handling staff
5.1 Complaints will be investigated by the RLHA Complaints Officer at Stage One.
5.2 Complaints will be investigated by the RLHA Appeals Officer at Stage Two.
5.3 If the Complaints Officer and/or the Appeals Officer are conflicted, or the complaint relates to the Complaints Officer and/or the Appeals Officer, the complaint should be directed to a manager.
5.4 Staff will be suitably trained in the importance of complaint handling.
6 Complaints process
6.1 At each stage of the complaints process, RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will:
a) deal with complaints on their merits;
b) act independently and have an open mind but may consider reports of previous complaints that relate to the same issue being complained about;
c) give the resident a fair chance to set out their position;
d) take measures to address any actual or perceived conflict of interest; (which may include asking another trustee to investigate the complaint);
e) consider all relevant information and evidence carefully.
f) keep the details of the complaint confidential as far as possible, with information only being disclosed if necessary to properly investigate the matter.
7 Stage One of the Complaints Process
7.1 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will acknowledge the complaint and make a record, within 5 working days. The acknowledgement will:
(a) summarise RLHA’s understanding of the complaint (The complaint definition);
(b) make clear which aspects of the complaint RLHA is, and is not, responsible for and clarify any areas where this is not clear;
(c) summarise RLHA’s understanding of what the Complainant is seeking as an outcome;
(d) raise any questions that require clarification from the Complainant; and
(e) set out the next course of action and anticipated timescale.
7.2 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will issue a full response within 10 working days from the complaint being acknowledged. In exceptional cases, if we anticipate that the complaint will take longer to resolve, this will be explained to the resident with a clear timeframe set out for the resolution of the complaint which will not exceed a further 10 working days, without good reason. If any further extensions are required, we will agree with resident regular intervals to update them on the progress of the complaint. Such explanation will also include the contact details of the Housing Ombudsman.
7.3 A complaint response will be provided to the resident when the answer to the complaint is known, not when the outstanding actions required to address the issue are completed. Outstanding actions will be tracked and actioned promptly with appropriate updates provided to the resident.
7.4 We will investigate the complaint in an impartial manner permitting all relevant parties to provide information. The resident and any third parties involved in the complaint should be given the opportunity to set out their position before any final decision is made. We may delegate the management and investigation of the complaint to another individual.
7.5 If the staff member dealing with the complaint is conflicted, or the complaint relates to that staff member, the complaint should be directed to the manager details are in the Residents’ Handbook.
7.6 If the complaint involves questions relating to the Hospital of William Parson or the resident’s legal obligations, RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will set out clearly our understanding of the respective legal obligations and may seek legal advice before doing so.
7.7 If new issues are raised by the resident during the stage one process, these should be dealt with as part of the process if they are relevant. However, if the inclusion of the new issues would unreasonably delay a response, relate to a different issue and/or are raised after the stage 1 response has been issued a new complaint will be logged.
7.8 In responding to the complaint, we will confirm in writing:
(a) The complaint stage
(b) The complaint definition
(c) The decision on the complaint
(d) The reasons for any decisions made
(e) The details of any remedy offered to put things right
(f) Details of any outstanding actions; and
(g) Details of how to escalate the matter to stage two if the individual is not satisfied with the result
8 Stage Two of the Complaints Process
8.1 If the resident is not satisfied with all or part of the stage 1 response, they can escalate their complaint to stage 2. This can be done in writing by email, via telephone call or in person. The person dealing with the complaint at stage 2 will not be the same person that responded at stage 1.
8.2 The resident does not need to provide reasons for requesting the complaint to be escalated
8.3 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will acknowledge the complaint at stage 2 within 5 working days of receipt and will
(a) summarise RLHA’s understanding of the complaint (the complaint definition);
(b) summarise RLHA’s understanding of what the resident is seeking as an outcome;
(c) raise any questions that require clarification from the resident; but acknowledge that reasons do not need to be given for the complaint to be escalated to stage 2;
(d) set out the next course of action and anticipated timescale.
8.4 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will respond in writing to the resident within 20 working days of the stage 2 complaint being acknowledged, informing them of the outcome of the investigation. This will be the landlord’s final response.
8.5 If RLHA believes that the appeal will take longer than 20 working days, this will be explained to the resident with a clear timeframe set out for the resolution of the complaint which will not exceed a further 20 working days. If any further extensions are required, we will agree with resident regular intervals to update them on the progress of the complaint. Such explanation will also include the contact details of the Housing Ombudsman.
8.6 A complaint response will be provided to the resident when the answer to the complaint is known, not when the outstanding actions required to address the issue are completed. Outstanding actions will be tracked and actioned promptly with appropriate updates provided to the resident.
8.7 In responding to the stage 2 complaint, we will confirm in writing:
(a) The complaint stage
(b) The complaint definition
(c) The decision on the complaint
(d) The reasons for any decisions made
(e) The details of any remedy offered to put things right
(f) Details of any outstanding actions; and
(g) Details of how to escalate the matter to the Housing Ombudsman will be provided if the resident is not satisfied with the response.
9 Putting things right where something has gone wrong
9.1 Where something has gone wrong RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will acknowledge this and set out the actions it has already taken, or intends to take, to put things right. These can include:
• Apologising;
• Acknowledging where things have gone wrong;
• Providing an explanation, assistance or reasons;
• Taking action if there has been delay;
• Reconsidering or changing a decision;
• Amending a record or adding a correction or addendum;
• Providing a financial remedy;
• Changing policies, procedures, or practices.
9.2 Any remedy offered must reflect the impact on the resident as a result of any fault identified.
9.3 The remedy offer must clearly set out what will happen and by when, in agreement with the resident where appropriate. Any remedy proposed must be followed through to completion.
9.4 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will take account of the guidance issued by the Housing Ombudsman when deciding on appropriate remedies.
10 Scrutiny & oversight
10.1 RLHA has a senior lead person who is accountable for our complaint handling. This person will assess any themes or trends to identify potential systemic issues, serious risks, or policies and procedures that require revision.
10.2 A member of the board of trustee’s has been appointed to have lead responsibility for complaints to support a positive complaint handling culture. This person is known as the Member Responsible for Complaints (MRC)
11 Annual Review
11.1 This policy will be reviewed on an annual basis
11.2 RLHA acting on behalf of the Hospital of William Parson will carry out an annual self-assessment in accordance with the Code.
11.3 The Trustees of the Charity will consider any findings or recommendations of the annual self-assessment and the annual complaints performance and service improvement report.
12 For the purposes of this policy:
12.1.1 Contact for Stage 1:
Name: Zoe Wallace
Telephone number: 01252 356000
Address: RLHA, Building 4, Archipelago, Lyon Way, Frimley, GU16 7ER
Email address: customerservices@elmgroup.org.uk
12.1.2 Contact for Stage 2
Name: Zoe Wallace
Telephone number: 01252 356000
Address: RLHA, Building 4, Archipelago, Lyon Way, Frimley, GU16 7ER
Email address: customerservices@elmgroup.org.uk
Zoe Wallace with then assign the Stage 2 complaint to the senior member of staff appropriate to the nature of the complaint, to be investigated.
13 Housing Ombudsman Service
The contact details for the Housing Ombudsman Service are:
Telephone: 0300 111 3000
Website: https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/contact-us/
Address: Housing Ombudsman Service,
PO Box 1484, Unit D, Preston, PR2 0ET
Annual Complaint Performance and Service Improvement Report
A copy of the Charity’s Annual Complaint Performance and Service Improvement Report can be found here.
The Charity’s Complaints Procedures Self-Assessment, undertaken by the Trustees, can be found here.