Article: Compliments or Complaints Article Body Raising your concerns and getting things sorted out We hope that the services we provide for children and young people, and for parents and carers, are of the quality and type you expect. We would like to hear what you think. Please tell us what we are doing well and what needs improving. If you are not happy about the way we have treated you, you should tell us how you feel and try to sort things out with us. You might want to talk through your issues first with someone that you trust and feel comfortable with. It is usually best for any problem to be dealt with where and when it happens, so try and talk it over with the person that you deal with in a service, for example a social worker, foster carer, family support worker or residential worker. You can also contact their manager to discuss your concerns. Most concerns are quickly and successfully resolved in this way. You can also contact the complaints team and they will arrange for someone to talk to you in private and will try to help you sort the problem out. You can talk to the complaints manager either on your own or with a friend. Talking to someone can often sort your problem out and stop a small worry becoming a big one, but if talking to someone has not helped and you are unhappy with the response you received, you can make a formal complaint. You can expect to be treated fairly and with respect when you make a complaint; any concerns will be taken seriously. You should not feel afraid to complain. What to do when you want to make a complaint You can make a complaint to Children's Services in several ways: in writing by telephone by email by recording your complaint on tape using the online complaints form You can make your complaint to the Children's Services complaints team or raise it directly, as a complaint, with the service concerned. Details about how to contact us are given below. Being clear about what you want sorting out and what result you are looking for will enable us to respond more effectively to your complaint. What happens next We will contact you to tell you we have received your complaint and what is happening about it. We will try to do this straightaway and certainly within five working days. Your complaint will be referred to a manager who will look into the issues raised and then respond to you in writing. We aim to resolve your complaint within 10 working days and by 20 working days at the latest. Most complaints are resolved in this way. If you remain dissatisfied If we have been unable to resolve your complaint at this stage and you remain dissatisfied with the outcome, you should contact the Children's Services complaints team and we can take the complaint on to a second stage. You have 20 working days from receiving the response of the first stage to make this request. What happens at this point? A member of the Children's Services complaints team will contact you to see if there is anything further that can be done to resolve your complaint without delay and they may arrange to meet with you to discuss your complaint in person. If your complaint cannot be resolved straightaway, an investigating officer with no knowledge of the case will be appointed to look at the issues you have raised. A person outside the council (an 'independent person') will also be asked to take an independent look at the investigation in cases of complaints involving children's social care. The investigating team will arrange to meet you so that you can fully explain your complaint. You may wish to have someone with you to support you. They will then interview the people involved and read any records or papers that are necessary. At the end of the investigation they produce reports which will be considered by one of the senior managers in the directorate. The senior manager will then write to you with their response. A full response is generally completed within 25 days from the start of this second stage but can sometimes take longer (the rules say up to 65 days for children's social care complaints). We will contact you if this is the case. If you still remain dissatisfied If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of the second stage, you can request a review of your complaint. You have 20 working days from receiving the response to the 'stage two' investigation to request a review. Please contact the complaints manager for further information. A review panel will be set up consisting of three independent people who will review your complaint and then make recommendations to the Executive Director for Children, Young People and Families. The director will respond to the recommendations and write to you within 15 working days. What if I am unhappy about how my complaint has been dealt with? If you are still dissatisfied with the way we have dealt with your complaint, you can contact the Local Government Ombudsman. The Ombudsman will usually expect you to have taken your complaint through our complaints procedure first. Further information The information provided here is for children and young people and other people wishing to complain about children's services. Different arrangements exist for complaints about schools. For further advice about making a complaint or if you have any concerns about making a complaint please contact the Children's Services complaints team on 01226 772433 for social care complaints or 01226 773535 for all other complaints. The way we deal with concerns and complaints about children's social care services is set out in the government's guidance Getting the Best from Complaints. Children's Services are only required to deal with complaints about events that happened within the last 12 months. You can contact the complaints team for advice if you are outside this timescale. Equalities impact assessment Equalities impact assessment of complaints procedure and guidance for schools How to contact us Children's Services Complaints Manager (social care complaints) Postal address: Social Care Feedback and Improvement Team, PO Box 679, Barnsley S70 9GG Telephone: 01226 772433 Text: 07786525880 Email: socialservicescomplaints@barnsley.gov.uk or Children's Services Complaints Manager (any other complaints about children's services) Postal address: Governance Planning and Partnerships, PO Box 634, Barnsley S70 9GG Telephone: 01226 773535 Email: cypfcomplaints@barnsley.gov.uk The complaints team is available from 8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to 4.30pm on Friday. If we are busy you can leave a message on voicemail and someone will ring you back as soon as they are free. You can also leave a message after hours and we will ring you back the next day. The NSPCC Children's Rights Worker service can be contacted on 01226 779494 Additional needs Please contact the complaints team for advice if you or someone you know needs this information in Braille, on audiotape, in large print, or in another language or in a child-friendly version.