Further information on complaints
This section provides additional information about resolving complaints.
The Council has a code of conduct that applies to officers of the Council and elected Members. This is to ensure standards of behaviour and professionalism. The Chief Executive’s Department can supply you with more information on this if required.
If, when you register your complaint, it is clear that the matter refers to another partner organisation then we shall refer your matter to them telling you what we have done and, if we know it, inform you of the complaints procedure that they follow.
You may direct complaints to your local elected Councillor or to your Member of Parliament. Your Councillor will decide whether to respond directly to you or ask the relevant officer of the Council to do so on their behalf. In the latter case the complaint will then be dealt with in accordance with our complaints procedure.
Local Government Ombudsman
The Local Government Ombudsman is independent of Government or local councils and provides impartial, confidential and free investigation of complaints about local authorities.
For example, whether a Council gave you incorrect information, made a decision in the wrong way, treated you unfairly, did not follow its own rules or the law or took too long to do something.
Before the service can investigate a complaint, the Council must be given an opportunity to answer the complaint. The Ombudsman prefers to take up complaints that have been through the Council’s own complaints procedure. In Reigate & Banstead that means the complaint should have been through both stages of the formal procedure.
There are certain matters that the Ombudsman Service cannot investigate and information on this is provided in their leaflet. If you would like one of these, they are available in our Help Shops, by calling the Help Line on 01737 276000, or contacting us by email at:
The Ombudsman does not usually criticise the merits of a decision which has been properly taken simply because someone may disagree with it. He or she will, however, look at the way the decision was made.
There are 3 Local Government Ombudsmen in England and the one that deals with matters arising in Surrey is:
- Local Government Ombudsman
Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4QP
Telephone: 020 7217 4620 Fax: 020 7217 4621
Email: enquiries.london@lgo.org.uk
Freedom of information/Data Protection Act
The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act entitles anybody to ask a public authority in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (including Government departments), for any recorded information that they keep.
Guidance on making a FOI request can be found at www.foi.gov.uk
If you have made a FOI request and have not been satisfied with the Council’s response, you can complain using our complaints procedure. If after following our complaints procedure, you want to take your FOI complaint further, you can contact:
- The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk
Standards Board for England
If you have a complaint concerning comments or actions taken by an elected Member, then you may refer your complaint to the Standards Board. Their contact details are:
- The Standards Board
P.O. Box 36656
London SE1 0WN
Phone: 0845 0788181
Email: enquires@standardsboard.co.uk
Follow up
We may from time to time contact a sample of customers who have used our complaints process to ask for your feedback on how satisfied you were with the way you were treated. You co-operation with this process is much appreciated as it will help us to improve the service we offer to you.
Tell me about
- Making a complaint - the aims of our procedure
- Complaints -Informal stage
- Formal complaints - stage 1
- Formal complaints - stage 2
Reigate & Banstead Borough Council
Town Hall
Castlefield Road
Reigate
RH2 0SH
01737 276000
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