We want to make sure we’re doing all we can to listen to feedback from you, our customers, to understand your needs and how we can improve our services. We’re not perfect and on occasion, we will get things wrong. We welcome your complaints where we’ve fallen short. They are really important to help us understand where we could do better and focus on putting things right.
Every year we review at the way we handle complaints to make sure they’re in line with the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code. We publish an annual self-assessment document which explains how we meet the expectations in the complaint handling code.
This year, there have been some changes to the complaint handling code and we’re pleased with the service improvements we’ve made to meet the new expectations. Over the last year we’ve reduced the time we take to respond to complaints, adopted the housing ombudsman service remedy guidance to put things right, and we’re doing more to learn from complaints and improve the services you receive going forward. We recognise we can do more to share learning from complaints, so expect to see more about the improvements we’re making as a result of your feedback.
The Housing Ombudsman service provides focused 'Spotlight on' reports on key areas where they see similar complaints from several landlords. Their next areas of focus will be communications and relationships, including how landlords respond to customer vulnerabilities.
We want to make sure everyone is treated fairly and this includes understanding how equality, diversity and inclusion affect the service you receive. We regularly review our complaints to understand how vulnerability or protected characteristics affects your experience and ensure the way we manage your complaint considers your needs. This includes making adjustments to the way we deal with your complaint if you need us to, for example, the way we communicate with you or having someone to support you.
If you have any questions or would like to speak to the complaints team, then please email complaints@mhs.org.uk, visit our office, or phone us on 01634 565 333.