Co-op Complaints Policy
What is a complaint ?
The Housing Ombudsman define a complaint 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
The Co-op welcomes complaints from members where they feel that the Co-op has failed in its delivery of excellent service and provision of housing. The Co-op will take complaints seriously and endeavour to respond quickly with appropriate action to remedy faults.
The Housing Ombudsman can be contacted by a member/s at any time during a complaints process for support and advice. Contact information is provided at the bottom of this policy.
Other options available for members
The Co-op is a democratic organisation primarily run by its members. As such members have an array of options available to directly participate and have a democratic say in the policies and procedures of the co-op, and in addressing any gaps or failures that occur.
Members are encouraged to make use of these means of influencing policy and process in the first instance and to work with other members to improve the co-ops process and organise the business together.
This policy is available to members where the Co-op has failed in its obligations to them as a tenant, or has gone against its agreed rules, policy or procedure.
What won't be dealt with under this policy
Repetitive or Nuisance complaints: The Co-op is run by volunteers, and while it ensures capacity to deal with feedback and complaints, there is a limit to how much can be done before it impacts the capacity of the whole organisation. If a member engages in submitting large volumes of complaints or repeated complaints on the same subject, the Co-op will likely attempt to clarify the key matters under dispute, and address them as one complaint.
Suggestions to change policy: The co-op provides many routes, via working group participation, informal feedback and general meetings, to suggest changes or improvements to policy and procedure. If the complaint is just a proposal or suggestion to change a policy, then it should be taken to a meeting or to the relevant working group.
Conflicts between members: Any disputes or issues with members breaking their tenancy agreement is dealt with under the Co-ops Support and Wellbeing processes, which offer support to resolve conflicts wherever possible and options to take further action if necessary.
Issues raised with properly taken decisions at General Meeting: The Co-op is democratically run by its residents. If you disagree with a decision that was properly presented and voted on at a meeting, then raising the matter at a future meeting is the correct forum. If however you believe the decision was not properly taken, or some aspect of the process was faulty, then you may pursue that via this policy.
The Co-op will always seek to explain to members bringing complaints if they fall into any of the categories above, and direct and support them to pursue the other channels available to deal with those matters.
Members may always approach the Housing Ombudsman if they believe the Co-op is unreasonably refusing to process complaints.
Different Stages of the Co-op Complaints Policy
There are 2 possible stages that might be followed in dealing with a complaint about the Co-op's actions. At any point in the process members may engage with the Housing Ombudsman, who exist as an external independent body to support tenants with complaints. Contact details for the ombudsman are provided at the bottom of this policy.
The Complaint stages are:
- Stage 1 Complaint - an investigation conducted by one of the Co-op's Complaint Co-ordinators and one additional member or housing co-ordinator, with a response and actions.
- Stage 2 Complaint - an investigation by a panel of members/external panellists, with a response of findings and recommendation to a co-op meeting of actions.
Stage 1: Complaint
Explanation
A stage one complaint will be investigated by one of the Co-ops Complaints Co-ordinators, and another member or paid worker, which the Complaint co-ordinator will select based on the nature of the complaint and matter to be investigated.
Upon receipt of a complaint, the Co-op will acknowledge and confirm receipt within 5 working days of the complaint being submitted. This may include clarifying questions if any part of the complaint is unclear.
Members are encouraged to be as clear as possible when filling out complaints forms so that the matter can be dealt with swiftly. The Co-op workers can assist with filling out forms or identifying relevant policies to help ensure complaints are as clear as possible from the outset.
Timeframe
The Complaints Co-ordinator will investigate the complaint and provide a response within 10 working days of the complaint being acknowledged.
In exceptional circumstances, such as when time is needed to clarify the complaint before investigation, or if the complaint is extremely complex in nature, a further 5-10 working days may be required to respond. The co-ordinator will set out any extension and the reasons for within the normal timeframe for a response.
Response
A response from a stage 1 complaint will include an explanation of findings, and can include some or all of the following actions:
- An apology
- Any practical actions to address the matter at hand
- A recommendation for policy change or review
- Any statutory compensation due to the member/s
- Discretionary compensation awarded to the member/s up to the value of 1 week's rent
After a response to a Stage 1 complaint is delivered to the member/s making the complaint, if the member/s remain unsatisfied by the response, they have 5 working days to inform the Co-op of a desire to escalate to Stage 2 complaint.
Stage 2: Hearing by a panel of three Co-operative members
Explanation
A Stage 2 complaint will be acknowledged upon receipt of a member/s dissatisfaction with the outcome of a stage 1 complaint.
The Co-op will acknowledge escalation to Stage 2 within 5 working days of the communication. This may include clarifying questions if any part of the reasons for escalation or matters to address are unclear.
A Stage 2 complaint is co-ordinated by one of the Complaints Co-ordinators, and involves a panel of 3 members, which can include external bodies if appropriate, investigating the matter at hand and recommending a course of action to an EGM of the Co-operative.
Nobody who was involved in investigating or co-ordinating the stage 1 complaint should be involved in the stage 2 complaint.
The Complaints co-ordinator handling the complaint can select a panel appropriate to the matter to be investigated, including external bodies if outside expertise or knowledge is necessary for the investigation. The panel should be suitable to assess the complaint and should not have any conflict of interest in the matter at hand.
Timeframe
The panel investigation will be conducted in a timeframe that allows for the calling of a General Meeting of the Co-op to consider the panels response and recommendation and ratify the action within 20 working days of the complaint being escalated to Stage 2.
In exceptional circumstances, such as when time is needed to clarify the complaint before investigation, or if the complaint is extremely complex in nature, a further 5-10 working days may be required to respond. The co-ordinator will set out any extension and the reasons for within the normal timeframe for a response.
Response
A response and recommendation from a stage 2 complaint will include an explanation of findings, and can include some or all of the following recommended actions:
- An apology
- Any practical actions to address the matter at hand
- A recommendation for policy change or review
- Any statutory compensation due to the member/s
- Discretionary compensation awarded to the member/s up to the value of 1 month's rent
The General Meeting of the Co-operative will be arranged so that the ratified Complaint response is made and delivered within 20 working days of the complaint being escalated to Stage 2.
Members who have made the complaint or who are the subject of the complaint may make representation to the General Meeting if they disagree with any of the response, but after a decision is taken at the General Meeting, the internal complaints process is concluded and any further action can be pursued through the Housing Ombudsman.
Reasonable Adaptations, Advocacy and Support
The Co-op recognises that complaints can be difficult to raise, and take time and energy to pursue. The Co-op will happily make reasonable adjustments to communication and how a complaint is handled and conducted in line with any needs that the member/s making the complaint have. This might include such things as providing materials in a different format, arranging any meetings in an accessible space, offering additional time to explain what things mean or allow for a response etc.
The Co-op supports advocates communicating on behalf of members making complaints, or submitting complaints on a member's behalf. Any member must submit signed confirmation that they wish to have another person advocate for them or support them before the Co-op will copy the advocate into all relevant communications.
The Co-op will also consider reasonable requests for support while a complaint is ongoing, especially if any other disputes or domestic circumstances are making the situation more stressful and the Co-op can take action to alleviate the immediate situation while the compliant is being investigated. This may be achieved by engaging with the Co-ops Support and Wellbeing processes in parallel with the Complaint process.
The Independent Housing Ombudsman
Any member may contact the Housing Ombudsman at any stage of a complaints process, for support and advice. The Ombudsman will also handle complaints that remain unresolved after internal complaints processes have concluded. The Ombudsman can be contacted at:
Tel: 0300 111 3000 (9.15am-5.15pm: Monday to Friday)
Email: info@housing-ombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk
Post: Housing Ombudsman Service, PO Box 152, Liverpool, L33 7WQ
Review of this policy
This policy must be reviewed annually through a self-assessment to ensure that it remains in line with the requirements of the Housing Ombudsman. The self-assessment form can be found on their website. The results of the self assessment should be discussed at the Co-op's Annual General Meeting
Read the 2023 self assessement here