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Complaints Form and Procedure [pdf] 559KB  |  Complaints Policy on our Policies page

OUR COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

As a member of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, we have a two-step procedure. East End Homes complies with the statutory requirements of the Complaint Handling Code published by the Housing Ombudsman and which came into effect in April 2024. 

East End Homes will accept complaints from an advocate authorised to act on behalf of a service user. This does not include legal representatives who contact East End Homes with a view to taking legal action. 2.3 East End Homes may wish to interview the complainant at any stage of the complaints process. The complainant will have the right, at their own cost, to have a friend or advocate present at this interview but should inform East End Homes first. East End Homes will provide opportunities for complainants to discuss their complaint or dissatisfaction with a service in a face-to-face meeting with the Customer Resolution Officer which will be held at East End Homes local housing offices or by request.

If the member of staff who would normally be appointed as the investigating officer for a complaint feature within the content of the service user’s complaint, that person will not be appointed as the investigating officer and an alternative member of staff of at least equal seniority will be identified to carry out the investigation and provide a response. 

Confidentiality and data protection principles apply to the complaints process. We will not share any personal or property information as part of the complaint investigation with any third party who is not entitled to receive it, in line with East End Homes Data Protection Policy. 

If we are unable to accept a complaint, we will provide a detailed explanation in writing setting out the reasons why the matter is not suitable for the complaints process. We will advise the complainant that they have the right to challenge this decision by bringing their complaint to the Housing Ombudsman. Where appropriate the Housing Ombudsman can instruct East End Homes to take on the complaint. We will consider the individual circumstances of each complaint and will not take a blanket approach to excluding any complaint made. 

In the circumstances of unreasonable behaviour by a complainant, for example abusive behaviour toward East End Homes’ staff, during the informal and formal complaints process, the Unreasonable Behaviour (Complaints and Correspondence) Policy will apply. 

Definition of a complaint 

A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions, or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf and that is affecting an individual resident or group of residents. You do not have to use the word ‘complaint’ for it to be treated as such and when a resident expresses dissatisfaction you will be given a choice to make a complaint.

What we will not treat as a complaint: 

  • Services for which East End Homes is not responsible e.g. Council services such as Housing Benefit.
  • Where legal proceedings have started either by the complainant or by East End Homes this is defined as details of the claim, such as the Claim Form and Particulars of Claim, having been filed at court. East End Homes will take steps to ensure that residents are not left without a response for lengthy periods of time, for example, where a letter before action has been received or issued but no court proceedings are started, or a settlement agreement reached.
  • Where a complaint is submitted more than 12 months after the service delivery failure, and it is being brought to East End Homes’ attention for the first time. However, if the problem is a recurring issue any older reports will be considered as part of the background to the complaint. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of either the Managing Director or Deputy Managing Director for example where complaints concern safeguarding or health and safety issues.
  • Any initial service request and escalation request.
  • If you are a leaseholder and you are not happy with the way the service charge has been calculated. Queries on calculations should be raised with the Home Ownership Team and managed through the Service Charge Dispute Resolution Process.
  • Complaints which are made anonymously (matters which are made anonymously may be investigated outside of the complaints process).
  • Complaints from an individual living in an East End Homes leasehold property with whom East End Homes does not have a direct legal relationship and the complaint relates to the property rented. The complaint should be referred to the leaseholder or managing agent, except in cases where the complaint relates to an East End Homes service delivered directly to the complainant. Such complainants will be directed to their landlord and/or a housing advice agency. In all other cases, East End Homes will treat submissions as correspondence rather than through the formal complaints process.
  • Complaints where the complaint is from a former resident of East End Homes will be accepted at the discretion of East End Homes unless the individual initially expressed dissatisfaction about the issue whilst they were still residing in an East End Homes property.
  • Matters that have previously been considered under the complaints policy.
  • First reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB) or ongoing nuisance as part of an existing ASB case. Only complaints regarding the handling of a existing ASB case will be logged as a complaint.

Service Request 

This is when an issue is raised at the first point of contact and subsequently followed up where this is required. East End Homes will record all service requests and our response to them. This will include initial service requests, for example heating breakdown and will also include any escalation of the service request. Service requests and their escalation are not part of East End Homes' formal complaints process. Where service failures are voiced at a public meeting or submitted on a customer feedback exercise these will be treated as requiring formal investigation where this is requested, in which case a Stage One complaint will be initiated. EEH will provide details of how residents can complain when we seek feedback about our services. 

Complaints can be received in a variety of ways: 

Where a service user wishes to pursue a formal complaint, complainants can put their complaints in writing either in hard copy or on-line using the East End Homes Complaint Form, however complaints will be progressed however they are made. Where a complaint is taken on behalf of a service user, the officer taking the complaint will email the Customer Resolution Officer an accurate statement of the issues and concerns. The timeline for response to the complaint will start from the next working day after the complaint is made. Formal complaints can be initiated by providing a summary of the issues of concern. Normally, complaints should be submitted within 12 months of the service delivery failure to allow East End Homes to conduct a timely investigation, minimise the impact of any service delivery issues, and to incorporate timely learning outcomes to service delivery provision. 

Stage One of procedure

If an attempt to resolve your service request has been unsuccessful, a formal complaint will be recorded and investigated. If the handling of the service request remains ongoing EEH will continue their efforts to address the service request. 

When a complaint is made a written acknowledgement will be sent within 5 working days of receipt, informing the complainant who will be responding to it, and the timescales for a response.  The complainant will receive a full written response within 10 working days from receipt of the complaint. Where this is not possible for a particular reason, an interim response will be provided explaining why a full response is not possible at that time, giving a date by which, a full response will be provided and contact details for the Housing Ombudsman. This should not exceed a further 10 working days without good reason. Where complainants raise additional complaints during the investigation these should be incorporated into the Stage One response if they are relevant, and the Stage One response has not been issued. Where the Stage One response has been issued, or it would unreasonably delay the response, the complaint should be logged as a new complaint. However with the agreement of the complainant the Stage One response time can be extended to reflect a relevant additional complaint.

All final responses will detail the action that has been taken, the outcome, and whether the complaint has been upheld. If further action is necessary to resolve the issue, the complainant will be kept informed of such action and the outcome(s). The reply will explain to the complainant the process by which they can escalate their complaint if they remain dissatisfied. 

Our formal process will include: 

  • Confirmation of conclusion of Stage One; 
  • Overview of complaint;
  • Outcome and reasons for decisions made;
  • Compensation or remedies if offered;
  • Details of outstanding actions;
  • Explanation of how to escalate to stage 2 if not satisfied with the response.

Stage Two 

If the complainant remains dissatisfied, they can escalate to Stage Two of our process where a different member of staff will consider the complaint. The complainant should make this request within 15 working days of receiving a response under Stage One, setting out the outcome they would like. East End Homes will refer to this in our response and confirm whether this is feasible now or in the future. This may include any urgent actions that are immediately required. East End Homes will confirm their understanding of the complaint review having assessed what evidence is needed to fully consider the issues and the outcomes being sought with the resident. 

When a Stage Two complaint is made it will be acknowledged within five working days of the escalation request being received. Additional information can also be requested by East End Homes or provided by the complainant before the target date for providing a response. 

The review will be carried out by the Operations Manager or the relevant member of the Management Team who is responsible for the service area being complained about. 

East End Homes will aim to issue a final response within 20 working days of acknowledgement. If this target is not possible an explanation of the reasons will be provided to the complainant and a date given when the Stage Two response will be received. This should not exceed a further 20 working days without good reason. The contact details for the Housing Ombudsman will also be provided. 

If a decision is taken not allow a Stage 2 Complaints review, which will be made according to the exclusions set out in East End Homes Complaints Policy (paragraph 2.9), the response will be sent to the complainant within 20 working days of acknowledgement and indicate the East End Homes internal complaints procedure has been exhausted and explain to them their options for external complaint resolution if they wish to pursue the matter.

EastendHomes may wish to interview the complainant at any stage of the complaints process. The complainant will have the right, at their own cost, to have a friend or advocate present but should inform EastendHomes first.

OUTCOMES/FURTHER ACTION 

As part of the investigation at every stage, the investigating officer will indicate whether the complaint was upheld or not as part of the written response to the complainant. Where a mistake has been made East End Homes will acknowledge this, apologise in writing, and set out the actions it has already taken, or intends to take, to put things right.  

Complaints can be resolved in several ways. Any remedy offered will reflect the extent of all service failures, and the level of detriment caused to the resident as a result. The offer will clearly set out what will happen and by when, in agreement with the resident where appropriate:

    • acknowledging where things have gone wrong;
    • providing an explanation, assistance or reasons;
    • apologising;
    • taking action if there has been a delay;
    • reconsidering or changing a decision;
    • amending a record or adding a correction or addendum;
    • providing a financial remedy;
    • changing policies, procedures or practices.

If the complainant remains dissatisfied following the outcome of the Complaints Review, the complainant can refer the matter to their councillor or MP or to the independent Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS) directly though the following contact details:

The Housing Ombudsman Service

PO Box 152

Liverpool

L33 7WQ

Telephone: 0300 111 3000

info@housing-ombudsman.org.uk

www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk

 

East End Homes will comply with all determinations made by the HOS and will act in accordance with any recommendations made to resolve complaints

IMPROVEMENT PLANNING 

The complaints procedure is an opportunity for us to review the policy and procedures which have led to a decision, to check that these have been followed correctly or to recommend changes to these where we learn that they do not work properly. We do learn from our mistakes or where we could do things better, but we also have to follow specific guidelines from the government.  

East End Homes wishes to learn from the complaints received and as such the organisation will consider the ‘learning outcomes’ relating to each complaint as a standard agenda item at management meetings. Where training needs are identified as part of the learning outcomes, these are recorded and progressed by the service manager. 

East End Homes will ensure that an officer will be responsible for:

  • Registering and monitoring complaints and performance within response times.
  • Ensuring that complainants are updated and informed of any delays in the progression of the procedure and likely revised completion dates.
  • Complainants will be asked about how often and in what way they would like to be contacted about the progress of their complaint.
  • Receiving comments on East End Homes policies.
  • Presenting statistics on complaints performance and presenting these as part of the of the KPI report to the Resident Services Committee. This will include sectional and   thematic analysis.
  • Registering the learning outcomes from each complaint. At the completion of each stage, the learning outcome will be recorded and fed back to all previous investigation officers so that service improvements can quickly be incorporated into service delivery arrangements.
  • Sending a post-complaint satisfaction questionnaire to the complainant which captures complainants’ satisfaction with how the complaint was dealt with and the final outcome. This information will be monitored quarterly by the Resident Services Committee as part of the Key Performance Information provided.

East End Homes will support all employees (and third parties if this applies) who are responsible or engaged with complaints and complaint handling to act within the relevant professional standards e.g. Chartered Institute of Housing or the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors etc.