Policies

Complaints Policy

Policy Statement

CASA is committed to providing quality services to all its members and we strive to improve all the time. Therefore we welcome any feedback, positive or negative and aim to deal with all feedback promptly. If we receive a complaint we will investigate it thoroughly and hopefully in doing so avoid a similar complaint being made in the future. All complaints will be dealt with in a confidential/ need to know basis.

General Principles

Scope:

The purpose of this policy and these procedural guidelines is to provide guidance on the handling of complaints made to CASA. It applies to any complaints made by any CASA stakeholder or member of the public. It does not deal with complaints made by paid staff as these would be dealt with by law through the organisations grievance policy and procedure that form part of the Employment policy and procedures.

Responsibility:

The CEO is responsible for ensuring that the policies and procedures in this document are implemented. The Office manager also plays a key role in the complaints procedure. All other staff and volunteers are expected to comply with the complaints policy and procedure.

Measures:

These procedures outline the measures that will be taken to ensure that this policy is fully implemented.

Training and Instruction:

Training will be provided for frontline staff to help implement the policy.

Evaluation and Review:

Constructive feedback on this document is always welcome. It should be given to the Office Manager who will ensure that it is considered by the board. This policy will be reviewed on an annual basis. Complaints received and CASA response is monitored by the CASA board.

CASA’s Approach to handling Complaints:

CASA commits to the following approach for dealing with complaints:

• Complaints are always taken seriously
• All complaints are treated equally and with an open mind
• All complaints are treated sensitively, confidence will be maintained as far as possible
• No anger or irritation will be shown when a complaint is made
• No blame will be apportioned or excuses made until the full circumstances of the complaint have been assessed
• An early resolution will be sought to all complaints
• Complainants will receive an apology if warranted
• Complainants will always receive an explanation of the outcome of the decisions/actions
• Any documentation relating to complaints is filed securely

Abusive or anonymous complaints will not be responded to. 

Procedures for Dealing with Complaints:

Any staff or volunteers who receive a written complaint should channel them to the office manager.

Informal Procedure: In the first instance, every effort should be made to resolve complaints as speedily and informally as possible, directly with the individual involved.
If a resolution to the problem cannot be found the complainant should be made aware of the formal complaints procedure.

Formal Procedure: stage 1

A formal complaint must be in writing (letter or email) and addressed to The CASA Office Manager.

He or she will coordinate and investigate all complaints at this stage of the investigation. Support may be sought from the CEO or a board member if appropriate. Subsequently external support or expertise may be sought with due regard to data protection and confidentiality considerations.

If the complaint is about the office manager in which case the CEO or a board member will be responsible for handling the complaint. The complaint will be investigated and a solution sought as soon as possible and no later than 15 working days. The complainant will be written to with the outcome and made aware of stage 2 of the procedure.

Formal Procedure: stage 2

If the complainant is not happy with the outcome and/or the matter is still unresolved he/she should write to the CEO. If the CEO already dealt with the case, or it is about the CEO then it must be passed to the chair of the board. The complaint will be further investigated and a solution sought as soon as possible and no later than 20 working days, except in extraordinary circumstances. The complainant will be written to with the outcome.