Time & Talents Complaints Procedure
Time & Talents works with many people across Southwark, delivering a wide range of services and activities. Our aim is to create a world where everyone feels part of a community, and no one feels lonely or left behind.
However, we know that sometimes we get things wrong and people are not happy with the service they have received from us. This is why we have a complaints procedure. We want people to feel confident that their complaints and concerns are listened to and acted upon promptly and fairly.
Sometimes we can put things right, and sometimes we can only apologise and explain. We do our best to learn from our mistakes and change how we do things as a result.
Taking the time to tell us where we have gone wrong gives us the opportunity to improve the charity and our services. This is why we welcome your comments and complaints.
How to make a complaint:
1. Tell your concern to a member of staff
Please talk to a member of staff or the manager of the service you are unhappy with. Tell us as soon as possible, giving clear details. This gives staff the chance to put things right quickly, where possible resolving the problem.
If you cannot or do not wish to make a complaint in person, you have the option of emailing, writing or telephoning us.
Email: info@timeandtalents.org.uk
Post: Complaints, Time & Talents, The Old Mortuary, St Marychurch Street, SE16 4JE
Tel: 020 7231 7845
Including the following details will help us to investigate your complaint effectively and quickly:
- Tell us the specific area or service you are making a complaint about.
- Outline the nature of your complaint as precisely as possible. Please include details such as the place and time the incident occurred. This will help us to investigate further and hopefully to resolve the issue.
- Let us know if you have reported the complaint before, and if any action was taken previously.
- Please include your name and contact details, as we are limited in our ability to investigate anonymous complaints.
2. We will look into the matter
If you have made a complaint by speaking with a member of staff, they should explain the next steps to you during that conversation. If you have made a complaint in writing, we will contact you to acknowledge the complaint within five working days.
We will then carry out an investigation, which may include asking to speak with you further about the complaint. If your complaint is about the way a service is routinely delivered, the investigation will include talking to the team and managers about why the service is delivered in that way and asking questions based on the concern that has been raised. If your complaint is about an event or situation arising which is not routine, we will gather information about what occurred and what may have caused or led to the incident. The investigation will not be carried out by anyone named or involved in the complaint.
The target time for completing the investigation is 28 days, though it sometimes takes longer. If this is the case, any delay will be explained.
3. Findings of our investigation
We will tell you our findings after our investigation, usually in the same way that you raised the complaint. For examples, if you made your complaint in writing, we will write back with the outcome. If you raised your concern directly to a member of staff, we may be able to tell you an outcome directly in person. In some instances we may need to write to you as well as speaking with you.
If you make an anonymous complaint, we will generally be unable to report back to you with our findings.
If your complaint is upheld you will receive a full apology and, where appropriate, be given details of any action that we are taking to put things right or ensure that the situation does not happen again.
We endeavour to use the complaints procedure and investigations as an opportunity to learn and improve. The management team reviews complaints every six months to ensure any learning is implemented.
5. “I am unhappy with the response to my complaint” – Appealing
If you are unhappy with the response to your complaint, you should write to the CEO at the address shown below within 14 days of hearing the findings of the investigation.
Post: FAO The CEO – Private & Confidential, The Old Mortuary, St Marychurch Street, SE16 4JE
Records of all written complaints will be kept for at least one year after the complaint is resolved or dealt with.
The CEO, with support from the management team, reviews complaints files annually and ensure appropriate action is taken to achieve ongoing improvements.