Corporate Complaints
Social media should not be used to raise complaints, as platforms are not continuously monitored, especially outside normal working hours. If you have a formal complaint about us, you should contact us via our complaints procedure.
Equalities: We strive to ensure that our complaints service is accessible to all and that we do not inadvertently discriminate against members of any particular group in society. We respect our public sector equality duty obligations under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010 as reflected in our Equality and Diversity Document Framework.
We recognise and welcome those duties, which are embraced in our Equality and Diversity Document Framework.
Complaints About Our Standards of Service:
We strive to provide excellent and improving services, recognising that we can always do better. We also want to be open and responsive, listening to your needs and addressing them as quickly as possible. The nature and level of services will depend on the resources available to the Council. The quality of services depends on how well we do our job.
Anonymous complaints are discouraged, as anonymity makes it more difficult for us to properly investigate and understand a complaint and to provide appropriate responses or redress.
Can your complaint be resolved informally:
We encourage you to first raise your complaint directly and informally with the staff member or service department you have been dealing with. Please note that the Council is not responsible for the Dartford Crossing and/or Dart Charge related issues - complaints are to be referred to National Highways. Complaints related to highway issues, such as overgrowing vegetation, potholes, street lighting etc., are to be referred to Kent County Council.
If you have not been dealing with anyone or do not know who to contact about your complaint, you should call our Customer Services on 01322 343434. We welcome calls via Relay UK
- [Download Form] Formal complaints procedure and Equalities Questionnaire
- Read about the three stages of our complaints procedure
- Help and advice on complaints procedure
- Stage Two Review of complaints (relating to data protection, freedom of information, environmental information and re-use of information)
- Fluency Duty - A complaint that an employee in a customer - facing role has insufficient proficiency in spoken English for the performance of their role
- Complaints relating to the Council's landlord functions
- Most commonly raised complaints that are not within the remit of our Complaints Procedure
- Policy on Unreasonably Persistent and/or Vexatious Complainants
As a public sector body, the Equality Act 2010 requires us to consider making adjustments if people with disabilities have problems using our service. If those adjustments are reasonable, we must make them. We are committed to making sure the way we work does not disadvantage disabled people and meets our legal obligations.
If you need any help or support in using our service, please let us know and we will consider what changes we can make to assist you. If you want this information in another language or format (such as large font or Braille), please contact us.
You can use Relay UK which helps people with hearing and speech difficulties communicate with anyone over the phone, using the national relay service.
See our Complaints Process Privacy Notice
How to complain
Our formal complaints procedure - Your complaint must be about something specific. You must tell us what you believe we have done wrong, how this has affected you and what you think we should do to put things right.
Stages of the corporate complaints procedure
The three stages of our complaints procedure - Describe your complaint as fully and clearly as possible, telling us which members of staff, contractors or service you have dealt with (the complaint form will guide you through the process).
Help and advice on corporate complaints procedure
For advice on procedure, contact the Corporate Complaints Officer on 01322 343434
Your Councillor or Member of Parliament may be able to help resolve your complaint by pursuing it with the relevant service department for you.
Stage two review of a DPA, EIR and FOI decision
If you are dissatisfied with our response on your initial application, you can ask for a Stage Two review of our decision.
Most commonly raised complaints that are not within the remit of our procedure
Most commonly raised complaints that are not within the remit of Dartford Borough Councils complaints procedure.
Complaints relating to alleged breaches of the Member Code of Conduct
Codes of conduct - The Council is required to adopt 'Arrangements' for dealing with complaints alleging code of conduct breaches.
Complaints relating to the Council's landlord functions
Complaints about the Council's landlord functions are considered by the Housing Ombudsman, rather the Local Government Ombudsman. There may however be some overlap between the jurisdictions of the two Ombudsmen.
Insurance Claims
The Council operates a number of insurance policies in relation to Council owned property, public liability etc. This does not include claims arising from damage/injuries caused by any defect in the public highway, which is the responsibility of Kent County Council.
Fluency Duty
As a public authority, we are subject to the fluency duty. A legitimate complaint is one about the standard of spoken English by our staff in a customer-facing role and not about their accent, dialect, manner or tone of communication, origin or nationality.