Complaints and Feedback

Customer Complaints, Compliments and Comments

We always aim to provide high quality services to everyone that lives, works and visits the Borough of Swindon. We mean it when we say that your views are important and we need you to tell us when a service is failing or something is not right. We will do our best to put things right and prevent them happening again.

Equally, we would like to hear from you about services that are delivered well and if you have an idea for an improvement or change to a service. Please see our Customer Suggestion Scheme for details.

Further information about the process of making a complaint or giving other comments is provided in the Complaints, Compliments and Comments Leaflet (PDF - 340Kb).

Definition of a Complaint

A complaint is defined as an expression of dissatisfaction with regards to:

• the standard of service, or
• action or lack of action taken by the Council, or
• decision taken by the Council, or
• the way in which the Council’s staff or representatives carry out their duties.

Registering a Complaint

With a few notable exceptions, your complaint will be dealt with, according to our customer complaint handling procedures. The information you provide may be passed to other departments within the Council to help us sort out your problem, but it is treated as confidential at all times.

We make a commitment to you, that we will deal with your complaints promptly, fairly and in line with our commitment to equal opportunities.

If, having exhausted the routes of appeal within our customer complaints handling procedures you are still not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Local Government Ombudsman for an independent review of your complaint.

Exceptions to Normal Procedures

The exceptions to our normal complaints handling procedures are:

Adult Social Care: This uses a statutory complaint process, which is separate to that used for all other council services. Should you wish to make a complaint please visit the Your Comments Count page.

Children’s Social Care: For children’s social care a statutory complaint process is used. This is separate to that used for all other council services. Should you wish to make a complaint please visit the Advice for Young People page.

Education: All Schools have their own complaints procedure and you should start the process by contacting the Head Teacher of the school to register the complaint.

Swindon Borough Council’s Adult Social Care Services have retained their two star rating from Government inspectors and are going from strength to strength ........

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