Policy Adopted on 15/04/2021 / Revised on 04/07/2023 and will be reviewed Q2 2024 – Revision 3.0
1.Policy Statement
This policy sets out to provide a fair complaints procedure which is clear and easy to use for anyone wishing to make a complaint.
2. Reason for Policy
The purpose of this policy is to ensure all members of the Revive community and members of the public know how to provide feedback or make a complaint and ensure that the feedback or complaint is responded to appropriately and in a timely manner.
3. Who Should Read this Policy
- All members of the Revive Church community
- All staff members
- All Leaders with Revive Church
- Volunteers
- Board of Trustees
- Overseers
- Senior Leaders
- Operations Team
- Administrational Staff & Volunteers
- Financial staff & Volunteers
- Revive Hub Staff & Volunteers
4. Resources
5. The Policy
5.1 Introduction
Revive Church views complaints as an opportunity to learn and improve for the future, as well as a chance to put things right for the person or organisation that has made a complaint.
Our policy is set out:
- to provide a fair complaints procedure which is clear and easy to use for anyone wishing to make a complaint
- to publicise the existence of our complaints procedure so that people know how to contact us to make a complaint
- to make sure everyone at Revive Church knows what to do if a complaint is received
- to make sure all complaints are investigated fairly and in a timely way
- to make sure that the complaints are, wherever possible, resolved and that relationships are repaired
- to gather information which helps us to improve what we do.
5.2 Definition of a complaint
A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, about any aspect of Revive Church.
5.3 Where complaints come from
Complaints may come from any person or organisation who has a legitimate interest in Revive Church, and members of the church or local community. A complaint can be received verbally or in writing.
This policy does not cover complaints from staff who should follow the grievance procedure in the Staff Handbook.
5.4 Confidentiality
All complaint information will be handled sensitively, telling only those who need to know and following any relevant data protection requirements.
5.5 Responsibility
The overall responsibility for this policy and its implementation lies with the Board of Trustees.
5.6 Review
This policy is reviewed regularly.
- Complaints Procedure
Written complaints may be sent by email to: office@revivechurch.uk or by post to: Revive Church, High Street, New Mills, High Peak, Derbyshire SK22 4BR.
Verbal complaints may be made by phone to 01663 741112, or in person, to any of our Revive Church staff, volunteers or trustees at Revive Church, or at any of our events or activities.
6.1 Receiving Complaints
Complaints may be received through channels publicised for that purpose, or through any other contact details or opportunities the complainant may have.
Complaints received by telephone or in person must be recorded. The person who receives a complaint by phone or in person should:
- write down the facts of the complaint
- take the complainant’s name, address, telephone number and email address
- note down the relationship of the complainant to Revive Church e.g. client, church member etc
- tell the complainant that we have a complaints procedure
- tell the complainant what will happen next and how long it will take for them to receive a response
- where appropriate, ask the complainant to send a written account by post or email so that the complaint is recorded in the complainant’s own words
For further guidelines about handing verbal complaints, please see Appendix 1.
6.2 Resolving Complaints
6.2.1 Stage One
In many cases, if a complaint is about a person, that complaint is best resolved by the recipient of the complaint. If the complaint has been received by that person, they may be able to resolve it swiftly and should do so if it is possible and appropriate.
Whether or not the complaint has been resolved, the complaint information should be passed to the Operations Manager to record the details in the complaints log. If it has not already been resolved, they will delegate an appropriate person to investigate the complaint and to take appropriate action.
If the complaint relates to a specific person, they should be informed and given a fair opportunity to respond.
Complaints should be acknowledged by the person handling the complaint within one week. The acknowledgement should specify who is dealing with the complaint and when the person making the complaint can expect a response. A copy of the complaints procedure is attached.
Ideally, complainants should receive a definitive reply within four weeks. If this is not possible because, for example, an investigation has not been fully completed, a progress report should be sent to the complainant with an indication of when a full reply will be given.
Whether the complaint is justified or not, the reply to the complainant should describe the action taken to investigate the complaint, the conclusions drawn from the investigation, and any action taken as a result of the complaint.
Should the complainant wish to withdraw a complaint, then they may do so at any time by making a request to withdraw a complaint by email to: office@revivechurch.uk or post to:
Revive Church, High Street, New Mills, High Peak, Derbyshire SK22 4BR.
6.2.2 Stage Two
If the complainant feels that the complaint has not been satisfactorily resolved at Stage One, they can request that the complaint is reviewed at Board level by the Board of Trustees. At this stage, the complaint will be passed to the Chair of the charity (of Revive Church).
The request for a Board of Trustees level review should be acknowledged within two week of receiving it. The acknowledgment should specify who will deal with the case and when the complainant should expect to receive a reply.
If the complaint relates to a specific person, they should be informed and given a further opportunity to respond.
The person who dealt with the original complaint at Stage One should be kept informed of what is happening.
Ideally, complainants should receive a definitive reply within four weeks. If this is not possible because, for example, an investigation has not been fully completed, a progress report should be sent to the complainant with an indication of when a full reply will be given.
Whether the complaint is upheld or not, the reply to the complainant should describe the action taken to investigate the complaint, the conclusions drawn from the investigation, and any action taken as a result of the complaint.
The decision taken at this stage is final, unless the Board of Trustees decide it is appropriate to seek external assistance with a resolution with the AoG.
Should the complainant wish to withdraw a complaint, then they may do so at any time by making a request to withdraw a complaint by email to: office@revivechurch.uk or post to:
Revive Church, High Street, New Mills, High Peak, Derbyshire SK22 4BR.
6.2.3 External Stage
The complainant can complain to the Charity Commission at any stage. Information about the kind of complaints the Charity Commission can involve itself in can be found on their website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-charities.
6.3 Variation of the complaints procedure
The Board of Trustees may vary the complaints procedure for good reason, such as to avoid a conflict of interest. For example, a complaint about the Chair should not have the Chair leading the Stage Two review.
6.4 Monitoring and learning from complaints
Complaints are reviewed annually to identify any trends which may indicate a need for further action. This summary/report is reviewed by the trustees annually.
Practical guidelines for handling verbal complaints
- Remain calm and respectful throughout the conversation
- Listen and allow the person to talk about the complaint in their own words. Sometimes a person just wants to ‘let off steam’
- Do not debate the facts in the first instance, especially if the person is angry
- Show an interest in what is being said
- Obtain details about the complaint before any personal details
- Ask for clarification wherever necessary
- Show that you have understood the complaint by reflecting back what you have noted down
- Acknowledge the person’s feelings (even if you feel that they are being unreasonable). You can do this without making a comment on the complaint itself or making any admission of fault on behalf of the organisation e.g. “I understand that this situation is frustrating for you”
- If you feel that an apology is deserved for something that was the responsibility of your organisation, then apologise
- Ask the person what they would like done to resolve the issue