Whilst Ashbright Agency aims to provide clients and their families with a first-class service at all times and in all circumstances, it is recognised that there may be rare occasions where the service provided falls short of our own very high standards.
We are extremely keen that clients and their families should make us aware of such instances at the first available opportunity so that we can investigate the incident and put the situation right as quickly as possible.
For this reason, we have in place a formal complaints procedure that we make clients and their families aware of and free to use, should the need arise. In this context a complaint is any communication from a client or a member of their family, or from a carer or other visitor, either in verbal or written form, expressing dissatisfaction with anything relating to the provision of care.
A staff member will receive the complaint and will record it in the initial complaints log, and inform the Registered Manager who will, if possible, investigate the circumstances surrounding the complaint there and then. This is done with a view to achieving an immediate solution that will be acceptable to the person making the complaint and to make sure that our standards are maintained.
Where it is not possible to solve the problem to the satisfaction of the parties concerned at the time, advice from appropriate organizations will be sought.
The Registered Manager will ensure that the complaint is acknowledged in writing within 7 days of receipt and a formal response provided within 28 days.
The Registered Manager will record all complaints on a Complaints Investigation Form. The Registered Manager will:-
Ensure that the relevant employee responds to the complaint and that all other associated persons are advised of actions taken during all stages of the complaints procedure.
Investigate the complaint and establish the facts.
Determine if any policies and regulations have been broken.
Attach all relevant documentation to the complaints investigation form.
Ensure that necessary corrective action is taken.
Inform the Nominated individual if the complaint takes longer than 28 days to investigate. In this event, the Nominated Individual will review the complaint and set in place the additional necessary actions to bring the complaint to a satisfactory end as soon as possible.
After a full investigation, the Registered Manager will relay a response to the complainant detailing the corrective action to be taken.
Monitor the effectiveness of the action.
Maintain a record of all complaints and regularly forward the Initial Complaints Log and the Complaints Investigation Forms to the Nominated individual who will monitor and analyse all complaints and report on the findings at management review meetings.
If the complainant is still not happy with the outcome, then the Manager will arrange a meeting immediately to try and find a solution to the concerns raised.
If the complainant is still not happy with the outcome after the meeting with the manager, then the complainant can contact their Local Social Care team or Healthcare CCG or Advocate.
If the client is still not happy with the outcome, they can contact the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.