Housing Ombudsman Self Assessment

1.2 A complaint must be defined as:

A complaint must be defined as:

‘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,

affecting an individual resident or group of residents.

We comply. 

The exact Housing Ombudsman definition is included within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy which is available on our website: Feedback, Compliments and Complaints

 

1.3 The resident does not have to use the word ‘complaint’ for it to be treated as such.

The resident does not have to use the word ‘complaint’ for it to be treated as such. A complaint that is submitted via a third party or representative must still be handled in line with the landlord’s complaints policy.   

We comply. 

Front-line staff have received training on the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code and have been trained to identify when issues raised should be escalated to complaint.  We do not rely on the customer using the word ‘complaint’ to escalate to a formal complaint. 

 

Included in the Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy is a section regarding complainants approaching a dedicated person to facilitate resolution of complaints who include MP and councillor.

 

1.6 …if further enquiries are needed to resolve the matter, or if the resident requests it, the issue must be logged as a complaint.    

We comply.

As per our policy, we will always look to try and resolve issues as quickly as possible and we will be clear with the customers as to what action has been taken following the issue/s being raised. However, if there are continued failures, we would escalate to a formal complaint. We would not deny a request for a customer to log a complaint, unless the request falls within the exemptions outlined within our Complaint and Customer Feedback Policy.

 

1.7 A landlord must accept a complaint unless there is a valid reason not to do so.

We comply.

We have a section included in our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy which outlines where a complaint would not be accepted. Please refer to our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy on our website:

Feedback, Compliments and Complaints | Estuary

 

1.8 A complaints policy must clearly set out the circumstances in which a matter will not be considered, and these circumstances should be fair and reasonable to residents.

We comply. 

We have a section included in our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy which outlines where a complaint would not be accepted. Please refer to our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy on our website:

Feedback, Compliments and Complaints | Estuary

 

1.9 If a landlord decides not to accept a complaint, a detailed explanation must be provided to the resident setting out the reasons why the matter is not suitable for the complaints process and the right to take that decision to the Ombudsman.    

We comply. 

As per our policy, we will always contact the customer to explain the reason for the complaint not progressing and provide helpful support where possible and advise them of their right to contact the Housing Ombudsman at this stage. 

2.1  Landlords must make it easy for residents to complain by providing different channels through which residents can make a complaint such as in person, over the telephone, in writing, by email and digitally. While the Ombudsman recognises that it may not be feasible for a landlord to use all of the potential channels, there must be more than one route of access to the complaints system.

We comply.

Multiple accessible routes are available for residents to make a complaint. These include via phone, email, social media, letter, via dedicated online complaints form, face-to-face and our customer portal. We manage all complaints, regardless of the channel in which they have originated, with the same expectations and timescales.

 

2.3 Landlords must make their complaint policy available in a clear and accessible format for all residents.

This will detail the number of stages involved, what will happen at each stage and the timeframes for responding.

We comply.

Our Complaints and Customer Feedback policy is available online, along with an online version of our complaints leaflet.  We also have an easy-read version of this leaflet available on the website.  All can be downloaded from the website and paper copies can be provided on request.  

The leaflet has also been shared with front-line staff to hand out to customers as and when required.

Our information is also available in several languages on our website.

2.4 Landlord websites, if they exist, must include information on how to raise a complaint. The complaints policy and process must be easy to find on the website.

We comply. 

We have a dedicated feedback, complaints and compliments page on our website.

Feedback, Compliments and Complaints | Estuary

A link to this page is also included on the homepage of our website.

 

2.5 Landlords must comply with the Equality Act 2010 and may need to adapt normal policies, procedures, or processes to accommodate an individual’s needs.

Landlords must satisfy themselves that their policy sets out how they will respond to reasonable adjustment requests in line with the Equality Act and that complaints handlers have had appropriate training to deal with such requests.

We comply.   

We have an equality and diversity section included within our Complaints and customer feedback policy.

Our in-house system provides alerts for specific customer needs and our Customer Feedback Team have access to this information.

 

2.6 Landlords must publicise the complaints policy and process, the Complaint Handling Code and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme in leaflets, posters, newsletters, online and as part of regular correspondence with residents.

We comply.    

Our Complaints and Customer Feedback policy, along with the Complaint Handling code is available on our website.

Our complaints leaflet also outlines our process. We post regularly on social media to advertise the Housing Ombudsman service and also information on how to log feedback with us.

We also include information on how to log feedback with us in our resident newsletters.

 

2.7 Landlords must provide residents with contact information for the Ombudsman as part of its regular correspondence with residents.

We comply. 

Our Complaints and Customer Feedback policy, along with the Complaint Handling code is available on our website.

Our complaints leaflet also outlines our process. We post regularly on social media to advertise the Housing Ombudsman service and also information on how to log feedback with us.

We also include information on how to log feedback with us in our resident newsletters.

 

2.8 Landlords must provide early advice to residents regarding their right to access the Housing Ombudsman Service throughout their complaint, not only when the landlord’s complaints process is exhausted.

We comply. 

We advise in our policy that customers can contact the Housing Ombudsman at any point during the complaints process for their guidance and advice.  Contact details of the Housing Ombudsman service is included within this policy, as well as in our acknowledgement letters and response letters. We also post regular social media posts to advertise the Housing Ombudsman service.

We also have a section on our feedback website page on the Housing Ombudsman and their contact details.

Staff have also received training on how to signpost to the Housing Ombudsman Service if required.

 

3.1 Landlords must have a person or team assigned to take responsibility for complaint handling to ensure complaints receive the necessary attention, and that these are reported to the governing body.

This Code will refer to that person or team as the “complaints officer”.

We comply. 

We have a dedicated Customer Feedback Team who act as the first point of contact for complaints and provides guidance and support to customers using our complaints service. They are responsible for the monitoring and auditing of the complaint process as well as the outcome of complaints, including lessons learnt.

This team is part of the Customer Directorate.

3.2 …the complaint handler appointed must have appropriate complaint-handling skills and no conflicts of
interest.

Complaints are investigated and dealt with by an appropriate investigating officer within each department. These staff are appropriately trained, as well as receiving support from the Customer Feedback Team.

4.1 Any decision to try and resolve a concern must be taken in agreement with the resident and a landlord’s audit trail/records should be able to demonstrate this. Landlords must ensure that efforts to resolve a resident’s concerns do not obstruct access to the complaints procedure or result in any unreasonable delay.

It is not appropriate to have extra named stages (such as ‘stage 0’ or ‘pre-complaint stage’) as this causes unnecessary confusion for residents. When a complaint is made, it must be acknowledged and logged at stage one of the complaints procedure within five days of receipt.

We comply.   

All contact from our customers is logged and recorded on our Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.  This includes any contact received via any communication channels.

All front-line staff are trained to recognise failures of service and to log complaint requests if required.

This required timescale for logging complaints is included within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy, leaflet and website.

We have a dedicated team for logging complaints.

4.2 Within the complaint acknowledgement, landlords must set out their understanding of the complaint and the outcomes the resident is seeking.

If any aspect of the complaint is unclear, the resident must be asked for clarification and the full definition agreed between both parties.

We comply.

Our complaint acknowledgement includes these areas.

Our current policy outlines that should there be areas which are unclear, a member of the Customer Feedback team will contact the complainant to ensure there is an accurate understanding of what has gone wrong and how the complainant would like us to resolve the issue.

Our complaints policy outlines that the investigating officer should make initial contact with the resident once the complaint is received.

4.6    A complaint investigation must be conducted in an impartial manner.    

We comply.

We ensure that all complaints are assigned to an impartial investigating officer. Officers who have investigated a complaint at stage 1, would not investigate the complaint at stage 2.

4.7

The complaint handler must:

·                deal with complaints on their merits

·                act independently and have an open mind

·                take measures to address any actual or perceived conflict of interest

·                consider all information and evidence carefully

·                keep the complaint confidential as far as possible, with information only disclosed if necessary to properly investigate the matter.

We comply.

The Customer Feedback Team will quality check a sample of complaint responses and raise any concerns to heads of service.

Training for investigating officers has raised awareness of this criteria.

Within our complaint procedure, there is a section included for investigating officer responsibilities. 

4.11 Landlords must adhere to any reasonable arrangements agreed with residents in terms of frequency and method of communication.

We comply.

As per our policy, the investigating officer will try to contact the complainant via telephone, unless contact has been requested in an alternative form.  They will agree arrangements and frequency of communication within this initial conversation.

4.12    The resident, and if applicable any staff member who is the subject of the complaint, must also be given a fair chance to:

• set out their position

• comment on any adverse findings before a final decision is made.

We comply.

As part of the investigation process, staff or third parties will be given an opportunity to set out their position with regard to a complaint raised.

The investigating officer will also contact the complainant for any further information of comments, before issuing the final response letter.

4.13 A landlord must include in its complaints policy its timescales for a resident to request escalation of a complaint  

We comply.

The timescale for escalation is included within the Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy, leaflet and also in the stage 1 response letters.

4.14 A landlord must not unreasonably refuse to escalate a complaint through all stages of the complaints

We comply.

Outlined within our policy are circumstances where escalation is not warranted.  Please refer to our policy on the website:

Feedback, Compliments and Complaints | Estuary

4.15  A full record must be kept of the complaint, any review and the outcomes at each stage.

This must include the original complaint and the date received, all correspondence with the resident, correspondence with other parties and any reports or surveys prepared.

We comply.    

Once a complaint is received a dedicated complaint case is raised on our Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and this creates a unique case reference number which is included within the complaint acknowledgment letter.  All correspondence and documents are recorded under this complaint case and this case will remain active until all outstanding actions of the complaint are completed.

4.18 Landlords must have policies and procedures in place for managing unacceptable behaviour from residents and/or their representatives when pursuing a complaint.   

We comply.

We have a section for unreasonable behaviour included within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy. 

Stage 1

5.1 Landlords must respond to the complaint within 10 working days of the complaint being logged.

Exceptionally, landlords may provide an explanation to the resident containing a clear timeframe for when the response will be received. This should not exceed a further 10 days without good reason.

We comply.

This timescale is included within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy, website (Including information for extensions) and leaflet. 

All investigating officers have received training on this requirement, and we have introduced internal control measures to mitigate the risk of being non-compliant in this area. 

5.5 A complaint response must be sent to the resident when the answer to the complaint is known, not when the outstanding actions required to address the issue, are completed.

Outstanding actions must still be tracked and actioned expeditiously with regular updates provided to the resident.    

We comply.

We aim to respond to complainants within 10 working days from the date the complaint is logged. (Unless an extension is required and then a holding letter with a new response date will be provided)

All follow-up actions relating to the complaint are logged under the complaint case on our Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Updates on follow-up works and actions required by dates can also be added to these actions on the system.

Any additional correspondence to the complainant, including phone calls, and emails are also recorded under this complaint case.

 

5.6 Landlords must address all points raised in the complaint and provide clear reasons for any decisions, referencing the relevant policy, law and good practice where appropriate     

We comply.    

Our complaint response letter includes a section which requires the investigating officer to list and address all points raised in the complaint.  This was also reiterated to investigating officers at internal complaints handling training that has been held.

5.8 Landlords must confirm the following in writing to the resident at the completion of stage one in clear, plain language:

•  the complaint stage

•  the decision on the complaint

•  the reasons for any decisions made

•  the details of any remedy offered to put things right

•  details of any outstanding actions

•  details of how to escalate the matter to stage two if the resident is not satisfied with the answer

We comply.    

These criteria are included in our complaint response letter template and have been reiterated to investigating officers at complaint handling training that has been held.

Stage 2

5.9  If all or part of the complaint is not resolved to the resident’s satisfaction at stage one it must be progressed to stage two of the landlord’s procedure, unless an exclusion ground now applies.

In instances where a landlord declines to escalate a complaint it must clearly communicate in writing its reasons for not escalating as well as the resident’s right to approach the Ombudsman about its decision.  

We comply.

As per our policy, if a stage 2 escalation request is denied, we will confirm this in writing to the complainant, outlining the reason for this decision.  We will also share details of the Housing Ombudsman Service at this stage. 

The Customer Feedback Team also record any refusals to log a stage 2 and the reason why.

5.10 On receipt of the escalation request, landlords must set out their understanding of issues outstanding and the outcomes the resident is seeking.

If any aspect of the complaint is unclear, the resident must be asked for clarification and the full definition agreed between both parties.

We comply.

Our stage 2 acknowledgement letter includes a section to include all issues raised and the outcome the complainant seeks.

As per our policy, we state that the stage 2 investigating officer may wish to speak to a complainant directly, unless they have chosen another method of communication, to obtain further clarity and understanding of the complainants outstanding concerns.

 

5.11 Landlords must only escalate a complaint to stage two once it has completed stage one and at the request of the resident.

The person considering the complaint at stage two, must not be the same person that considered the complaint at stage one.    

We comply. 

This is outlined within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy and complaints will only enter the stage 2 process, once they have a completed stage 1 case.

 

5.12 The person considering the complaint at stage two, must not be the same person that considered the complaint at stage one.

We comply

As per our policy, the investigating officer at Stage 2, would not have been involved within the investigation of the stage 1 complaint.

 

5.13 Landlords must respond to the stage two complaint within 20 working days of the complaint being escalated.

Exceptionally, landlords may provide an explanation to the resident containing a clear timeframe for when the response will be received. This

should not exceed a further 10 days without good reason.

We comply.

This timescale is included within our Complaints and Customer Feedback Policy, website (Including information for extensions) and leaflet. 

All investigating officers have received training on this requirement, and we have introduced internal control measures to mitigate the risk of being non-compliant in this area. 

 

5.16 Landlords must confirm the following in writing to the resident at the completion of stage two in clear, plain language.

• the complaint stage

• the complaint definition

• the decision on the complaint

• the reasons for any decision made

• the details of any remedy offered to put things right

• details of any outstanding actions

and

• if the landlord has a third stage, details of how to escalate the matter to stage three

• if this was the final stage, details of how to escalate the matter to the Housing Ombudsman if the resident remains dissatisfied.

                                                                                                      

We comply.

• These criteria are included in our complaint response letter template and have been reiterated to investigating officers at the complaint handling training that was held. (we only have a 2-stage internal complaints process)

6.1 Effective dispute resolution requires a process designed to resolve complaints.

Where something has gone wrong a landlord must acknowledge this and set out the actions it has already taken, or intends to take, to put things right.

We comply.

We have a section included within our complaint response letters to address this requirement. 

6.2 Any remedy offered must reflect the extent of any service failures and the level of detriment caused to the resident as a result.

A landlord must carefully manage the expectations of residents and not promise anything that cannot be delivered or would cause unfairness to other residents.  

We comply.

This is reflected in our internal complaints procedure and all investigating officers have received further training on this requirement and this area is being closely monitored by our Executive Team and Senior Management Team.

 

6.5 The remedy offer must clearly set out what will happen and by when, in agreement with the resident where appropriate.

Any remedy proposed must be followed through to completion.    

We comply.

Our complaint response letters have a section to include timelines for follow-on actions.  All follow-on actions from a complaint can be raised separately and monitored by the investigating officer. Updates on follow-on works and actions required by dates can also be added to these actions on the system.

Follow-up actions are tracked under the complaint case and only marked off when the action has been completed.

 

6.6    In awarding compensation...

...a landlord must consider whether any statutory payments are due, if any quantifiable losses have been incurred, the time and trouble a resident has been put to as well as any distress and inconvenience caused.    

We comply.

Our response letters have a dedicated section to outline the compensation awarded. We refer to the remedies guidance set out by the Ombudsman to assist with this area.  

We have a compensation policy to support our management of cases.

7.2 Accountability and transparency are integral to a positive complaint handling culture.

Landlords must report back on wider learning and improvements from complaints in their annual report and more frequently to their residents, staff and scrutiny panels.    

We comply.

Performance against complaints is reported directly to our Executive Team as well as our Services Committee and Board.  
We have commenced a lesson learnt project with members of our Resident Voice and Influence Panel to help develop this area. This project group meets 4 times and year and will be focusing on top complaint trends and themes.

We also have a dedicated learning page on our website – Learning Points | Estuary

Complaints are discussed at both team and contractor meetings.

8.1 Landlords must carry out an annual self-assessment against the Code to ensure their complaint handling remains in line with its requirements.    

We comply.

Completed

8.2    Landlords must also carry out a self-assessment following a significant restructure and/or change in procedures.

We comply.

Noted and will adhere to if required. 

8.3 Following each self-assessment, a landlord must:

• report the outcome of their self-assessment to their governing body. In the case of local authorities, self-assessment outcomes should be reported to elected members.

• publish the outcome of their assessment on their website if they have one, or otherwise make accessible to residents.

• include the self-assessment in their annual report section on complaints handling performance.

We comply.

We have added this to our website - Housing Ombudsman Self-Assessment | Estuary

This is also referred to as part of our annual report – Annual Report - 2022-23 | Estuary