Compliments & complaints DEBRA is committed to achieving the highest standards in all its activities. We are always open to listening to comments and suggestions for improving our service. We acknowledge that from time to time complaints will arise. We take complaints very seriously and view them as an opportunity to improve and develop our services. Without your support we would not be able to provide the highly valued services to the EB community. If you would like to send any compliments or concerns, please fill in our compliments and complaints form. Table of contents Purpose Related documents Documentation/records Responsibilities Confidentiality What is a Compliment or a Complaint Procedure for Compliments Procedure for Complaints Guidelines Purpose DEBRA is committed to achieving the highest standards in all its activities. We are always open to listening to comments and suggestions for improving our service. If you would like to compliment us on our work we would be delighted to hear from you. We acknowledge that from time to time complaints will arise. We take complaints very seriously and view them as an opportunity to improve and develop our services. Without your support we would not be able to provide the highly valued services to the EB community. Related Documents Internal Standard Procedures for Complaints Crisis Communications Plan Reporting Serious Incidents Documentation/Records Compliments & Complaints Register Responsibilities Overall responsibility for this policy and its implementation lies with the Chief Executive and the Senior Management team. The Finance, Risk & Audit Committee receive a quarterly report detailing Compliments and Complaints received and the outcomes by exception. The Retail Committee also receive a quarterly report. Confidentiality All complaint information will be held sensitively, telling only those who need to know and following any relevant data protection requirements. After one year it will be destroyed unless there is a valid reason to keep it for longer. What is a compliment or a complaint? DEBRA defines a compliment as a customer/supporter statement of positive recognition or praise for a service or individual. DEBRA defines a complaint as “an expression of dissatisfaction whether justified or not, by a person or persons receiving a service from the charity that cannot be immediately resolved, and about which the complainant desires a follow-up action is taken and a response provided”. Procedure for compliments Our staff and volunteers work hard to provide a high standard of service and it is very rewarding for them to be complimented on this. We will pass any compliments that you may give on to them. How to register your compliment If you wish to compliment DEBRA or a particular member of our staff in writing, please address this to the Company Secretary, who will ensure that your compliment is dealt with. Response times for compliments You will receive an acknowledgement within one week of receipt. Procedure for complaints How to register your complaint A complaint should be raised at the time with the relevant person and hopefully will be resolved. If this has not happened and you wish to take it further this is what you should do. General complaints should be addressed to the Company Secretary, shop complaints should be addressed to the Head of Retail Administration (who will then investigate your complaint with, the appropriate member of the Senior Management Team). Please give all the information required to help us fully understand the situation. There are several ways that you can contact us. Online You can register your compliment or complaint on our website at www.debra.org.uk/contact-us You can email us: For any concerns or compliments regarding our charity please contact the Company Secretary – Dawn Jarvis at [email protected] For complaints relating to our shops please contact the Head of Retail Administration Tricia McKale at [email protected] Or write to us at: DEBRAThe Capitol BuildingOldburyBracknellBerkshireRG12 8FZ Please include your name, address and contact telephone number in your email or letter so that we can get back in touch with you easily. Your details will only be used for the reason that you gave them to us. We respect your privacy and will not pass your details on to any third party without your permission. Full details of DEBRA’s Privacy Policy can be found at www.debra.org.uk/privacy. Guidelines Response times for complaints We will acknowledge all complaints within 2 working days of receipt. Once your complaint has been investigated we will endeavour to respond within 28 days. Wherever possible we will deal with it more quickly. If the situation is more complex and an immediate response is not possible, we will let you know that we plan to investigate the matter and get back to you as quickly as we can, giving an indication of the anticipated timescale. How does the process work? We will work to address your concerns as soon as we can. When you register a complaint, we would be happy to hear how you think it could be resolved. We want to reach the best possible outcome. We will keep you informed about our progress, provide you with a prompt response and let you know who to contact if you wish to escalate your complaint further. There may be rare occasions when we choose not to respond to a complaint. These include: When a complaint is about something that DEBRA has no direct connection to. We may choose to reply to clear our name but we are not obliged to. When someone unreasonably pursues a complaint that we have already responded to. When a complainant is being obviously abusive, prejudiced or offensive in their manner. When a complainant is harassing a staff member. When a complaint is incoherent or illegible. When a complaint has clearly been sent to us and numerous other organisations as part of a bulk mailing or email. In this instance we can choose whether it is necessary for us to reply or not. If a complaint is sent anonymously we would not be able to respond but may still investigate the complaint to see if any improvements can be made to our services. If you require further help If you do not feel completely satisfied by our response then you can contact The Charity Commission at the address below. The Charity CommissionPO Box 1227LiverpoolL69 3UG Tel: 0845 3000 218 www.charity-commission.gov.uk Complaints about charitable fundraising only can be made to the Fundraising Regulator. Fundraising Regulator2nd Floor CAN Mezzanine Building49-51 East RoadLondon N1 6AH Tel: 0300 999 3407 www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/complaints/make-complaint Manage Cookie Preferences