The NHS Complaints Procedure is made up of three stages. As a general rule, each stage of the NHS Complaints Procedure can go ahead only if the previous one has finished.

The first stage of the complaints process is called “local resolution”. It begins when you first tell the people responsible for the service you are unhappy about that you want to complain.

The aim of local resolution is to try to sort out your problem directly and as quickly and easily as possible. The regulations imply that local resolution should not take longer than six months.

Generally, you should make your complaint within six months of the incident happening or within six months of you realising that you have something to complain about.

Who do I complain to?
You need to complain to the person in charge of complaints for the service you are complaining about.

In most NHS doctors’ and dentists’ surgeries, opticians, health centres and so on, this will be the Practice Manager.

If you want to complain about a hospital or an ambulance service, contact the Complaints Manager or the Chief Executive of the NHS Trust. If you are not clear where to send your complaint, ask for advice from PALS or the Complaints Department at the hospital or from ICAS.

You can explain what happened to you:

• in person
• on the telephone
• by email
• in a letter.

Trusts tend to prefer having complaints in writing but if you would rather telephone or go in person, the Complaints Manager should make a written record of your complaint. It is important to raise everything that concerns you at this stage as new issues cannot be introduced at a later stage of the process. If your complaint is not resolved at this stage and you want to take it further, whatever you have raised here will be referred to later.

It may be helpful to keep a record of any phone calls you make or letters you write or receive about your complaint. To help you do this, a Log Sheet is included in the Information pack, which you can download. You can fill in all the details of who you wrote or spoke to, what was agreed and when it needs to be done by.

What will happen next?
Sometimes the Complaints Manager can resolve your problem immediately. Whether they can or not, you should receive a letter acknowledging your complaint within two working days. The actual written response to your complaint may take some time but you should get a written reply within 25 working days (10 days for Family Health Service Practitioners such as GPs, Dentists etc.). This can be extended further but only if you agree to this extension.

Useful tip: if you send a written complaint, keep a copy of your letter to refer to later.

How should the NHS handle your complaint?
Through:

• an investigation into the facts of your complaint. This may answer all your points and you may be happy to leave things at that.

And/or

• a meeting chaired by a member of the trust which could be the Complaints Manager. This gives you the chance to:
• tell the staff concerned about your experiences
• explain what you want to see happen as a result.

And/or

• conciliation. A conciliator is a neutral and independent person who can arrange a meeting with you and those involved (either separately or together) so you can all express your views and try to resolve your differences. A conciliator will become involved only if everyone affected agrees. The conciliation process is confidential.

Conciliation Services differ from Trust to Trust so you should ask the Complaints Manager to explain how it operates in your area.

You can take a friend, relative or advocate with you to any meetings that you might have. If, for whatever reason, you are not happy with the outcome of the meeting, write to the organisation concerned and say why.

Useful tip: If you can, prepare a list of questions you want to ask and bring this with you to your meeting. Try and keep these questions as clear as you can. You may find it helpful to number your questions and tick them off as the meeting progresses. If you have any relevant paperwork, take this with you to refer to.

What will happen next?
Once the investigation is finished and any meetings have been held, the Complaints Manager should send you a letter signed by the Chief Executive containing:

• a summary of your complaint
• what the investigation found and details of the next stage of the NHS Complaints Procedure.

Depending on the Trust’s investigation, the letter may contain:

• an apology if relevant
• what will be done, by when, as a result of your complaint
• who is responsible for making this happen
• what steps have been taken to prevent the same thing happening again to other people.

The letter should be:

• balanced, factual and impartial
• clear and easy to understand.

It should avoid technical terms and, if they are used, it should explain what they mean. This letter is called the “final response letter”. If you haven’t received this within six weeks you may want to ring or write and ask when the Complaints Manager will be replying to your complaint.

This is the end of the first stage of the NHS Complaints Procedure.

What if I am not happy at the end of the Local Resolution stage?
If you are not happy with the reply from the Complaints Manager, first review:

• the letters
• any meetings
• any conciliation process.

Separate out exactly what you are:

• happy with
• unhappy with.

What are my options?
You could write another letter explaining what you think has not been covered. This could result in an offer of another meeting with the staff and managers concerned.

The Complaints Manager might feel that the staff have done all they can to answer your complaint and advise you to go to the next stage of the complaints procedure.