How to complain or suggest improvements to our services.

The Society aims to deliver high quality adoption and fostering services. If anyone who receives one of our services is dissatisfied then we will encourage them to complain or to make suggestions about how we can improve. This is an effective way of monitoring the services we deliver and to make changes when necessary.

• Who can complain or suggest improvments?
• Anyone who has received a service from the Society and is dissatisfied with any aspect of this service.
• Anyone who wishes to act on behalf of someone who received a service from the Society that was not satisfactory.
• A child who has been directly involved in a service provided by the Society.
• Anyone with parental responsibilities or parental rights in respect of a child who has received a service provided by the Society.

How to make a formal complaint

Whenever possible we would hope to resolve any problem speedily in an informal way but if this is not possible the following Complaints Procedure is designed to assist people who want to make a formal complaint about one of our services.

You should:

• Put your complaint in writing to;

The Director
St. Andrew’s Children’s Society
7 Johns Place
Edinburgh
EH6 7EL

• The Director will acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days and after investigating the complaint will respond in writing to you within 14 working days. The director may also consult with an Independent Investigator who is not employed by the Society.
• It is hoped that the complaint will be resolved but if you are not satisfied and wish to take the matter further you should write back to the Society within 28 days of receiving a response from the Director.
• Your complaint will then be placed before our Complaints Review Committee which is made up of two representatives from our Board of Trustees and an Independent Investigator. Having considered your complaint they will make a recommendation on how to resolve the complaint and this will be passed to the full Board of Trustees which will make a final decision and will provide you with a full written record of their deliberations.
• If you are not satisfied with how the Society has dealt with your complaint you should make contact with the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care. You can also contact the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care at any time should you wish to complain about any aspect of the service you have received from St Andrew’s Children’s Society.

Contact details are:

Care Inspectorate
Compass House
11 Riverside Drive
Dundee
DD1 4NY

enquiries@careinspectorate.com

0345 600 9527

If you have any questions about how you can complain about a service the Society provides, please do not hesitate to contact any of our staff members who can help explain the process more fully and who will provide you with the necessary assistance.