About Making a Complaint

Making a complaint to the council.

You can report a problem with the roads, paths or countryside online.

You can report a missed waste collection or ask a question about council services on our customer services enquiry form.

There is a simple three-stage process for Corporate Complaints (these are complaints that do not relate to social care - there is a different complaints process for social care services).

While there are separate social care complaints processes, it is sometimes appropriate for complaints from within Children and Family Services to be progressed using the Corporate Complaints process. Where this happens, the standard Children's Social Care timescales will be used for stage 1 complaints (up to 20 working days for a complex or lengthy stage 1 complaint).

Below, we've explained key information for each stage, but you can find further details about the complaints process in our Icon for pdf guide to help you make a complaint [185KB] .

Stage 1: Informal Resolution

You can make a complaint online, by letter or email (corporate complaints only) or by using our Icon for pdf Stage 1 complaint form [68KB] .

Alternatively, you may make representation to a Councillor, who will pass the complaint to us on your behalf for consideration and response.

If this is the first time you have raised this complaint, it will be passed to the service that the complaint relates to for an answer. This is an informal (Stage 1) response. We will aim to reply within 15 working days, or to let you know within this time if our reply will take longer.

Stage 2: Formal Investigation

If you're not satisfied with the reply you receive at Stage 1, you have a right to ask for a review. This is a more formal complaints process (Stage 2).

The Complaints Manager will review the complaint and reply within 25 working days. They will advise you if the reply will take longer.

You can request a Stage 2 review using our Icon for pdf Stage 2 complaints form [158KB]

Stage 3: Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman Review

If you are still unhappy with the reply you receive, you may write to the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) and ask for an investigation.

The LGO is an independent and impartial body. There is no charge for this service.

Procedures and policies

Please view the policy and procedure documents relating to complaints below:

Social care complaints

If your complaint is about social care services you receive, there is a different complaints process.

You can find more information, including contact details for these services, on the pages linked below:

Complaints against Councillors

If you have a complaint against a Councillor, or about how a Council meeting was conducted, this should be directed to our Standards Committee for consideration.

More information on applying to the Standards Committee is available on our Conduct of Elected Councillors complaints page.