Compliments and complaints

We want to know what you think about our services and believe that providing excellent services to our residents and customers is essential.

We welcome your feedback, both good and bad, on the services that we provide. We want to learn from compliments and complaints to improve. Sometimes things can go wrong so if you feel that the service we have provided has fallen short of your expectations let us know so we can put it right.

Normally, we will only look at your concern if you tell us within six months of it happening. In any event, regardless of the circumstances, we will not consider any concerns about matters that took place more than one year ago.

Ways to tell us how we are doing

There are many ways that you can make a complaint or give us a compliment:

• For compliments, complete the 'Send us a compliment form' here.
• To make a complaint, please read on below how to best let us know.
  
• Send an email to enquiries@melinhomes.co.uk.
• Talk to us on social media – we’re on Facebook and Twitter – just search @MelinHomes.
• Write to us at Customer Feedback, Tŷ’r Efail, Lower Mill Field, Pontypool, Torfaen NP4 0XJ.
• Telephone 01495 745910.

To help us deal with a complaint

To help us deal with your complaint we ask that you provide us with as much information as possible. It will help us if you can answer the following questions as well as providing any documents or pictures you may have. If you need help making a complaint or a compliment please contact us, we want our services to be accessible for everyone.

1. The name of the department or service you are complaining about.
2. What do you think they did wrong, or failed to do?
3. Please describe how you personally have suffered or have been affected.
4. What do you think should be done to put things right?
5. When did you first become aware of the problem?
6. Have you already put your concern to one of our frontline staff? If so, please give brief details of how and when you did so.
7. If it is more than six months since you first became aware of the problem, please say why you have not complained before now.

How we deal with complaints

We will try to resolve your complaint at first contact. However, if we are unable to resolve any issues as a service request, we have a formal process in place where we will investigate your comments.

Stage 1 – Formal investigation by a Service Manager

Stage 1 complaints are sent to the investigating service manager to be investigated. You will receive an acknowledgement in three working days which will detail who is investigating your complaint. This will be the nominated member of staff who responds to you about your comments. We will provide you with a formal response within 15 working days of the acknowledgement of your complaint.

If you feel that we have not properly resolved your complaint, or you are not happy with the response will move your complaint to stage 2. You will need to provide a specific reason(s) for the review and be clear on the outcome you want.

Stage 2 – Complaint appeal

At stage 2 the complaint is passed to a Director responsible for the service who will identify whether we provided an appropriate and proportionate response. You will receive an acknowledgement in three working days which will detail who is investigating your complaint. This will be the person who responds to you about your comments. We will provide you with a formal response within 15 working days of the acknowledgement of your complaint.

Unresolved complaints

If you feel that your complaint has not been properly resolved after exhausting our internal complaint process, you can refer your complaint to a number of external agencies who will independently arbitrate the decision we have made.

For unresolved Housing related complaints please contact:
The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales
1 Ffordd yr Hen Gae
Pencoed CF35 5LJ

Tel: 0300 790 0203
Fax: (01656) 641199
Web: www.ombudsman-wales.org.uk
Email: ask@ombudsman-wales.org.uk

Help and advice

If you need help or advice in making a complaint you can contact your local councillor, Member of the Senedd (MS) or Member of Parliament (MP).

Alternatively, you can also contact Citizens Advice or Shelter Cymru.

For complaints relating to Supporting People Funded Schemes please contact your local authority and ask to speak to their supporting people team.

It may also be relevant to speak to your Local Authority’s Trading Standards team if we have provided a service that it associated with our subsidiary activities.