Daughters of Salford Baby Bank are committed to operating in a transparent and accountable way which embraces a culture of learning and reflecting on procedures and practice.

We will therefore ensure that individual needs are taken into account when applying this policy and that any reasonable adjustments are made as required. All complaints will go through each stage.

Please note that Daughters of Salford would not normally investigate complaints about something that happened more than a year ago, unless there are exceptional circumstances. The Ombudsman is independent of Daughters of Salford and has the authority to investigate these types of complaints on your behalf.

Stages of Complaints

STAGE ONE

This is the first formal stage and we will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 7 working days excluding bank holidays.

Our acknowledgement will be made in writing and will include:

• An initial apology for the issue that has caused you to complain.
• Contact details for who will be dealing with your complaint.

Within 14 working days of the receipt of your complaint being sent, you will be sent in writing the outcome of your complaint.

STAGE TWO

If you remain dissatisfied following our investigation at Stage One, your complaint will be considered at Stage Two. Ordinarily, complainants will have up to 28 days from the end of Stage One until the Stage Two process has to be started. At this stage we will ask you to provide details in writing to aid the new investigation and let us know why you are still dissatisfied.

In this stage the timescales are as follows:

Within 7 working days the trustees of the Daughters of Salford will:

• acknowledge receipt of your Stage Two complaint in writing
• will appoint two named investigators who may also be trustees to look into the complaint seriously

Within 5 weeks of the complaint being received at Stage Two, the trustees of the Daughters of Salford will ensure that:

• an investigation is completed by the two named investigators
• good practice is followed and where possible, the complainant will be met by the two investigators as part of the investigation process
• a draft response to the complainant will be sent to the rest of the trustees of Daughters of Salford for their comment.

Within 6 weeks of the complaint being received at Stage Two, the trustees of the Daughters of Salford will ensure that:

• that the complainant has received a written response regarding their complaint

Please note that in exceptional circumstances, the trustees of the Daughters of Salford may appoint an investigating officer from another service if it is felt that an independent review is required.

NEXT STEPS

There is no further right of appeal to the charity following completion of an investigation at Stage Two of this policy.

Within our final response, Daughters of Salford will inform you of your right to take your complaint further if you remain dissatisfied. Our response will contain the contact details for the appropriate Ombudsman’s office.

The final response will be sent by registered post, signed by a member of the trustee board and will be sent to the complainant within 6 weeks of the complaint being received at Stage Two.