Agenda item

The Wales Audit Officer provided a presentation on the Service User Perspective Review of Customer Contact.  The review concentrated on user perspectives of Community Hubs, the MyMon App and the Compliments, Comments and Complaints Procedure.

The outcomes overall were that citizens were mostly satisfied with the access and quality of customer contact arrangements, but that the Council could do more to take users’ needs into account in their design and effectiveness.

There was positive feedback regarding the Hubs and MyMon app, and the Compliments, Comments and Complaints process is well set out.

Regarding complaints, it was commented that it can be difficult to find the right person to contact and some users were less satisfied with complaint handling.  There were concerns that service user perception might be swayed by the complaint outcome and it was clarified that the review dealt with process and not the outcome.  It was felt to be important that the Council takes these messages on board.

It was found that the Council has arrangements to engage with residents but this does not always result in effective two-way conversation.  It was recommended that the Council could proactively seek service user experiences. 

The Head of Policy and Governance presented the management response noting that a comprehensive analysis of compliments, comments and complaints is provided to Audit Committee on an annual basis.   The Customer Relations Manager provided context that for the review period of 2017/18, 89 complaints were received.   77 complaints were considered in the review and the Wales Audit Office spoke to 24 of the complainants which was felt to be a small representation.  12 of the 24 complainants were dissatisfied and 12 satisfied or partly satisfied.  8 were dealt with at stage 1 of the complaints process (within timescales) and 16 at stage 2, of which 7 went over the required 30 days.

The aim is that complainants are contacted within 5 days, but noted that investigations start later and this may lead to some misinterpretation; this could be made clearer.

It was noted that there are opportunities for complainants to express dissatisfaction but it may be beneficial to send out a user satisfaction form about the process at the end of Stage 1 and Stage 2.  It was suggested that complainants don’t differentiate between process and outcome and where a complaint is not upheld, complainants are unlikely to be satisfied.

It was confirmed that the standard complaints policy format (as provided by the Ombudsman) is followed but that the policy will also be reviewed shortly. 

The Performance Manager provided the management response noting that arrangements will be strengthened where necessary together with other improvements having reflected on the service users’ feedback.

In response to a question, it was explained that only 2 complaints had proceeded to the Ombudsman in the review period and no further referrals were made from the 10 not completed at the time of the review.

A Member agreed that understanding the outcome was an important part of the context of the review and commented that unfavourable outcomes would naturally provoke negative feedback and balance is required.  It was added that the report could be more meaningful with more contextual information e.g. differentiation between complaints and gripes, and identifying where multiple complaints are made.  It was accepted that the 24 responses was a low number but even if complainants were dissatisfied, it is valid feedback for the council to take into account when reviewing its processes.

A Member reminded the Committee that there is instantly available information on the Chatbot and Facebook.

A Member asked how the authority compares with other authorities but this information was not available as each review has a different focus. It was agreed that timing is key and complaints easily escalate if not dealt with in a timely way.

It was confirmed that there is a 6 monthly report that includes progress against proposals for improvement.

The Committee noted the report.