COMPLAINTS POLICY AND PROCEDURE
Project West Child Contact Centre aims to provide families and referrers with the best possible service. However, from time to time there are occasions when users of our service may feel that the quality or level of service provided falls short of what can reasonably be expected. Your continued involvement and goodwill is of great value to us. If you have a complaint, we would like you to tell us about it.
If as a result of a complaint made to the Child Contact Centre, any of the parties involved think it would be helpful to consult with the National Association of Child Contact Centres (NACCC) then they can do so. All complaints will be dealt with as speedily as possible. The procedure is designed to establish the facts quickly and to deal with the matter fairly.
1. Complaints should be made initially to the Co-ordinator/Deputy Co-ordinator or Team Leader. If the complaints cannot be satisfactorily resolved there and then, brief written notes of the complaint and the circumstances that led to it should be made and the complainant should sign the notes.
2. These notes should be given to the Co-ordinator – or Assistant Co-ordinator if the Coordinator was on duty at the time of the complaint – as soon as possible. They will then investigate the circumstances in so far as the Child Contact Centre is concerned making notes, which should be signed and dated.
3. The Co-ordinator – or Assistant Co-ordinator – will then discuss the matter with the complainant and will attempt to resolve the issues to the satisfaction of all concerned.
4. If this is not possible the complainant will be invited to submit details in writing within 7 days to the Chair of the Management Committee who will acknowledge receipt of the complaint.
5. The Chair of the Management Committee will investigate the complaint and send a full written reply within 30 days, or explain why further time is necessary.
The reply will:
a. Set out the complaint so that the complainant can be sure it has been understood.
b. Describe the event and circumstances surrounding them.
c. Say whether or not the complaint is deemed to be fair, giving reasons for the decision. It should be noted that if such an admission could have legal / insurance implications the Chair of the Management Committee will have taken legal advice or contacted the insurers before writing.
d. Apologise on behalf of the Child Contact Centre (if the complaint is deemed to be fair) and explain the steps it has taken to avoid it happening again.
e. Notify the complainant that if he/she is not happy with this decision, then he/she must notify the Chair of the Management Committee within 14 days of receiving the reply that he/she wishes to take it further.
f. If the complainant wants to have his/her complaint heard at a Management Committee of the Project West Child Contact Centre, he/she will be entitled to bring a friend who can speak for the complainant, as can the person from the Child Contact Centre who is subject of the complaint (if appropriate). Three members of the Management Committee (excluding the Chair) shall hear the complaint. Both the complainant and the person against whom the complaint has been made shall be allowed to have their say and all previous written notes and the Chair’s investigations shall be taken into account. A written decision will be sent to all involved as is described in paragraph 5 a-e.
g. If after this procedure has been carried out the complainant is still not happy with the response, they should send a copy of all correspondence to the Chief Executive of NACCC (or representative in his/her absence) so that the NACCC Complaints procedure can be carried out.
Recording Complaints
1. If the complaint is resolved at Stage 3 then the matter shall be reported at the next Management Committee Meeting of Project West and recorded in the minutes of that meeting.
2. The written records of all complaints will be held by the Chair of the Management Committee, including any written legal or insurance responses and transferred to his/her successor as a strictly confidential file.
