Help to make a complaint

5.1    The council will ensure that people are assisted to understand how to make a complaint and what happens next.

5.2    When complaints are made, the council will ensure there is an opportunity to request any changes (reasonable adjustments) to remove any barriers to the person’s involvement and we will make changes to help people access our services in line with our duties outlined in the Equality Act 2010 and the Care Act 2014.

5.3    If someone is finding it hard to make a complaint—because of a disability, communication difficulty, or other substantial barrier—the council may offer help from an independent advocate, where appropriate.

An advocate is someone who can support the person to understand the process, express their views, and make sure their voice is heard. This is especially important when the person might struggle to do this on their own.

The council will consider each situation individually and offer advocacy support where it’s needed to make the complaints process fair and accessible (see appendix 4).

5.4    Sometimes, a person making a complaint may choose to have someone else, like a family member, friend, or advocate, act on their behalf.

5.5     When a person doesn’t have the requisite mental capacity to make a complaint, anyone with interest in their welfare—a family member, friend, unpaid carer, or professional (e.g., advocate, solicitor) can complain. The councils must consider whether they're appropriate representatives.

5.6     Sometimes, the council may limit or stop the representative’s involvement if:

• There are concerns that the representative is not acting in the person’s best interests.
• There are safeguarding concerns, such as risks to the person’s safety or wellbeing.
• The representative’s behaviour is unreasonable, for example, if they are aggressive or disruptive.
• The person has capacity and withdraws their consent as they no longer want the representative to speak for them.

In these cases, the council will take steps to protect the person and make sure the complaints process remains fair and respectful.