Making a complaint
We believe feedback about our services, or your experiences is vital for continuously improving our services to you.
You’ll find information about our complaints procedure under the headings below.
For detailed information about our complaints process, please read the Cheltenham Borough Council (CBC) housing complaints policy.
A complaint is 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.
- Complaints about Anti-Social Behaviour (these are dealt with through CBH ASB Policy)
- Request for a repair
- Complaints about services for which Cheltenham Borough Council is responsible
- Complaints about Homeseeker Plus Policy which have not been subject to the Homeseeker Plus appeals process.
- Initial requests for services
You can give us your feedback:
- In person
- In writing
- Via My CBH portal
- On the telephone by calling 0800 408 0000
- By minicom
- By typetalk
- By email to cbhcustomerrelations@cbh.org
OR visit our contact us page and fill in our online form.
We will do our best to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction. We will do this by following our complaints procedure.
Time limit
It is always better to try and resolve issues as soon as they arise, but CBH recognise this isn’t always possible. A complaint should be made as soon as possible after the event and within six months of the event occurring. If six months has passed since the event exceptions can be considered by the relevant Head of Service.
If CBH decide not to accept a complaint, a detailed explanation will be provided to the customer setting out the reasons why the matter is not suitable for our complaints process, with an explanation that the resident has the right to take that decision to the Ombudsman.
We will do our best to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction. We will do this by following our complaints procedure.
There are two stages to the CBH Complaints procedure:
Stage 1
We will write to you within three working days to acknowledge your complaint. We will also send you:
- a unique reference number
- an expected closure date
- where possible the name of the staff member that will be investigating
- The agreed definition of your complaint and your desired outcome
Your complaint will be investigated, and we will aim to resolve the matter within ten working days. At the end of the investigation, we will discuss our findings with you and send you a letter detailing our findings and the reason(s) for the decisions we have made.
If you do not agree with the decision please contact us on 0800 408 000 within ten working days of the date stated on your stage 1 closure letter to ask for your complaint to be considered at stage 2.
Stage 2
If you’re not happy with the way your stage 1 complaint has been dealt with you can ask for your complaint to be considered at Stage 2.
When we receive your request to escalate to Stage 2, we will set out our understanding of the issues that remain unresovled and the outcomes you are looking for.
Although you don’t have to explain your reasons for requesting a Stage 2 investigation, we will make reasonable efforts to understand why you’re not happy.
A Stage 2 complaint will be investigated and responded to within 20 working days of the complaint being escalated. Stage 2 complaints will be allocated to a senior officer. The officer will contact you to discuss the complaint in full. They will check the reasons for the complaint escalation and give you a fair opportunity to set out your position and the resolution you are seeking.
We will not unreasonably refuse to escalate a complaint to Stage 2.
If CBC declines to escalate a complaint to stage two of the procedure, we will give you a detailed written explanation. This will set out the reasons for not escalating, and your right to take that decision to the Ombudsman.
You can contact the Housing Ombudsman Service at any point during the complaint process. It cannot investigate your complaint whilst your complaint is going through our internal complaints procedure, however the ombudsman may be able to help you and your landlord reach a resolution.
The contact details are:
- Telephone 0300 111 3000
- Email info@housing-ombudsman.org.uk
- housing-ombudsman.org.uk
- Housing Ombudsman Service, PO Box 152, Liverpool, L33 7WQ.
You are entitled to contact the ombudsman at any point during our complaints process.
We are always keen to learn and will be led by your views and suggestions. Following the closure of your complaint you will receive a text survey to your mobile number seeking your feedback on your experience of our complaints process.
In line with the Housing Ombudsman Service complaints handling code, cabinet member for housing and customer services, Councillor Flo Clucas, has been appointed as member responsible for complaints (MRC).
The MRC is responsible for ensuring that complaint handling leads to service improvement for residents and learning and organisational improvement.
The role of the MRC is to champion a positive complaint handling culture and build effective relationships with complaints teams, residents, internal committees, and the Housing Ombudsman Service.
The MRC will seek assurances from the complaints team and where appropriate the operational teams that complaints are being managed, change is happening and that residents are being heard throughout the process.