Make a complaint

We want you to feel safe, supported and respected in your home. If you're unhappy with the service you've received, we want to hear from you so we can put things right and learn from your experience.

As your landlord, Lichfield District Council is responsible for handling all complaints about your housing service, including services delivered on the Council's behalf by Lichfield West Midlands Traded Services (LWMTS). 

Where your complaint relates to a service provided by LWMTS, we may ask them to investigate and provide information. However, Lichfield District Council remains responsible for managing your complaint, responding to you, and ensuring it is resolved appropriately. 

What is a complaint?

In line with the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code, a complaint is:

"An expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the landlord, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents."

Examples of complaints include:

  • Delays in carrying out repairs
  • Repairs that have not been completed properly
  • Poor communication or a lack of updates
  • Failure to provide a service you were entitled to receive
  • Concerns about the behaviour of staff or contractors
  • Failure to do something we said we would do

What is not normally treated as a complaint?

Some issues may need to be dealt with through a different process, including:

  • Initial requests for a service, such as reporting a repair for the first time
  • Insurance claims
  • Legal proceedings where the matter is being considered by a court
  • Matters where another formal appeals process applies, such as certain housing benefit or homelessness decisions

If we believe your issue should be dealt with under a different process, we will explain why and tell you how to pursue the matter.

How to make a complaint

You can make a complaint by:

Please tell us:

  • What happened
  • When it happened
  • Who was involved (if known)
  • How the issue has affected you
  • What outcome you would like

If you need help making a complaint, we will provide reasonable support to ensure you can access our complaints process.

Our complaints process

Stage 1 Complaint

When we receive your complaint, we will:

  • Acknowledge it within five working days and let them know who will handle your complaint
  • Investigate what happened
  • Contact any relevant service areas or contractors, including LWMTS where appropriate
  • Provide a written Stage 1 response within 10 working days

If we need more time, we may extend the response period by up to a further 10 working days. If this happens, we will explain the reason for the delay and keep you updated.

Stage 2 Complaint Review

If you remain dissatisfied with our Stage 1 response, you can ask for your complaint to be reviewed at Stage 2.

At Stage 2, a senior officer not previously involved in the complaint will review the case and consider whether:

  • The complaint was handled appropriately
  • The investigation was thorough
  • Further action is required

We will provide our Stage 2 response within 20 working days. In exceptional circumstances this may be extended by up to a further 20 working days, and we will explain why if an extension is required.

The Stage 2 response is the Council's final response under the complaints procedure.

Housing Ombudsman Service

You can contact the Housing Ombudsman for advice and guidance at any stage of your complaint.

Once you have received our final Stage 2 response, or if we fail to respond within the timescales set out above, you can ask the Housing Ombudsman to investigate your complaint.

For more information visit the Housing Ombudsman website. 

Learning from complaints

We view complaints as an opportunity to improve our services. We regularly review complaints, identify trends and take action where improvements are needed so that we can provide better services for all residents.