6.1 Not every comment, concern or problem is a complaint:
The Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman defines complaints as:
“an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about decisions, the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual or group of individuals ”.
6.2 This means that anyone who feels disappointed by the service they’ve received, or by something the council has done or failed to do, has the right to raise a complaint.
6.3 Sometimes, someone might contact the council to ask for a service, suggest an improvement, or report a problem. These are usually considered service requests, not complaints.
Examples include:
- asking for a service to be provided
- suggesting how a service could be improved
- reporting something that needs fixing
These are not treated as complaints unless the person is unhappy with how the council has responded to their request or concern. If they feel the issue hasn’t been resolved properly, it may then become a complaint.
