Corporate Complaints and Compliments Policy - Aims, purpose and scope of this policy

Cumberland Council strives to be transparent and fair in all aspects of complaints handling. A positive complaints culture is crucial in building positive relationships between the authority and its customers, as well as providing us with an understanding of our operational and working practices. This policy reflects the principles of the Complaint Handling Code published by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) and is aligned to the Complaint Handling Code issued by the Housing Ombudsman.

What a compliment means

'An expression of praise'

Hearing about when things have gone well is really important to the council. It helps us to maintain high standards and give thanks to the members of our teams who have done a great job and delivered a good service.

Compliments can be submitted at any time, to any member of staff.

What a service request means

The LGCSCO describes a service request as:

'A request for us to provide or improve a service, fix a problem or reconsider a decision'

Service requests are not complaints but give the organisation a chance to resolve matters to the customers satisfaction before they become a complaint. Examples of this are:

• requesting something for the first time
• reporting a fault with a streetlight
• reporting a pothole
• a missed refuse bag collection
• a noisy neighbour or anti-social behaviour
• requesting for home care services

Service requests can later be escalated to complaints if not resolved at this point.