Adult Social Care Complaints
Complaints about Adult Social Care Services are dealt with under the Adult Social Care complaints policy and procedure (PDF) [362KB] which complies with the statutory requirement as set out in the Local Authority Social Services and National Health Complaints (England) Regulations 2009.
We always aim to deliver the best possible service to ensure things run smoothly but sometimes we may fall short and not meet your expectations. We recognise the importance of responding quickly when things don't go to plan and putting the individual (and/or their representative) at the centre of efforts to resolve the issues raised.
Why you should tell us what you think
Your views are important to us. We want you to tell us about your experience to help us to look at service provision and plan for future improvement.
Who can make a complaint
A complaint can be made by the following people:
- an individual service user
- the representative of a service user (this can be anyone acting on their behalf with their consent)
- the representative of a service user who has not got capacity as long as they are seen to be acting in the interests of that service user
- a relative of a service user who is deceased
- someone who has been turned down for a service to which they think they are eligible
- a complaint can only be made by/on behalf of someone to whom the local authority may have the duty or power to provide a service
Making a complaint
Complaints about people's services are handled by a dedicated complaints team.
Contact us using our online Adult Social Care Complaint Form.
What happens next?
When you contact us with your complaint, we will try to sort out the problem quickly to resolve the matter.
If your complaint cannot be addressed quickly, we will acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days from the date it is received. The investigating officer may contact you to discuss your concerns further and agree a plan of investigation. You will be advised by the Complaints Team when you can expect to receive your response letter.
The person handling your complaint will carry out an investigation into your concerns and respond to you directly (or through your advocate/representative if you prefer). For complex complaints, we may need more time to investigate and respond to you. If this is the case, we will keep you informed.
If you are not satisfied with the complaint response, you can contact the Complaints Team who will look into this matter further and advise of the next steps.
Reasons why we will not investigate under the complaint's procedure
There are some occasions when a complaint is not dealt with under this policy. This includes when there is a separate appeal or review procedure. This may be an internal council procedure or external legal process through the courts. If this is the case, we will explain this when you first contact us. We will tell you what to do next.
Who can I contact for further help and advice?
If you are still dissatisfied and we have not been able to resolve your concerns, you can contact the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman to review the way we have dealt with your complaint. Their contact details are:
Postal Address:
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
PO Box 4771
Coventry
CV4 0EH
Telephone: 0300 061 0614
Online: https://www.lgo.org.uk/
Advocacy arrangements
If you are a service user who requires support to make a complaint, you can access the advocacy scheme at advocacyfocus.org.uk
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