Complaints Are a Gift — If You Treat Them That Way
Share
In social care, complaints often carry a stigma — something to minimise, defend against, or even fear. But complaints are one of the richest sources of insight into what isn’t working. When welcomed and handled well, they can drive real improvement and demonstrate your service’s integrity.
📢 Complaints = Feedback With Urgency
Every complaint is a signal. It means:
- Someone cares enough to raise a concern
- There’s an unmet need or missed expectation
- You have a chance to put things right and learn from it
Dismiss a complaint and you lose the opportunity — and the trust.
🔄 Make Complaints Part of Continuous Improvement
To build trust, your approach to complaints must be:
- Proportionate — not bureaucratic or defensive
- Accessible — for people with communication needs, in different languages or formats
- Reflective — use complaints data in audits and service reviews
Staff should see complaints as a positive process, not a threat.
📝 What to Say in Tenders
Commissioners want assurance that you learn from complaints, not just record them. Strengthen your tender by showing:
- Real examples of change following a complaint
- Trends in complaints data and what they triggered
- How you involve people in reviewing complaint outcomes
Don’t just say you “welcome complaints” — show how they’ve shaped your service.