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Service complaints procedure

Complaint Stages

Stage 1: Formal complaint

A Stage 1 Formal Complaint involves a senior officer within the service concerned investigating the matter for you. New accordion snipped August 2026

We will conduct an initial assessment of your complaint to decide if it can be progressed through our Formal Complaint stages.

  • If your complaint is about a matter that is listed in the section What is NOT a complaint? we will direct you to the correct council service or other relevant organisation.
  • If your complaint is defined as a Service request or report, these will be managed as a “business as usual service request”.
  • If your complaint can be progressed through our Formal Complaint stages, a full investigation will be initiated.

Making a Stage 1 Formal Complaint

We recommend reporting your Stage 1 Formal Complaint in writing rather than by phone or in person, this ensures that you can explain your concerns in your own words:

  • Online: Wherever possible, Stage 1 Formal Complaints should be made using the online form on our complaints webpage.  
  • By email: complaints@cherwell-dc.gov.uk
  • By post: Complaints, Cherwell District Council, 39 Castle Quay, Banbury, OX16 5FD

If you cannot submit your Stage 1 Formal Complaint in writing, you can call 01295 227001 to ask one of our customer services colleagues to submit the complaint on your behalf.

When making your complaint please include:

  • Your name and address (or email address)
  • What the complaint is about
  • Any other requirement (for example if you require your response in a particular format or need assistance in using our complaints procedure)
  • Any relevant reference numbers from previous contact with us about the matter
  • How you feel the complaint could be resolved for you

Please try to be as clear as possible so that we can begin the investigation promptly. If a complaint is unclear, we may need to contact you for more information. If you do not provide the information we need to investigate, we may not be able to take the matter further.

If you raise additional concerns during the investigation, these will be incorporated into the stage 1 response if they are related to the matter being investigated and the stage 1 response has not yet been issued, except where: 

  • the stage 1 response has already been issued
  • the additional concerns are unrelated to those already being investigated or  
  • adding the additional concerns to the investigation would unreasonably delay the response. 

In these circumstances the additional concerns will be treated as a new service request or complaint as defined by this procedure. 

Timescales for Stage 1 Formal Complaints

We will acknowledge your Stage 1 complaint within five working days of receiving it. This acknowledgment will include our understanding of your complaint, the outcomes being sought and if applicable, which aspects of your complaint we are not responsible for.

We will send a full response to your Stage 1 Formal Complaint within 10 working days of acknowledging it. 

If we cannot meet this deadline, or the complaint is complex, we will contact you to explain why an extension is needed. We will let you know when you can expect a response and where required the suitable intervals of keeping you informed about the complaint progress. In line with LGSCO and HO guidance, any extension will not be more than 10 working days without good reason. 

Some matters will take time to resolve, in these circumstances we will respond to your complaint as soon as the answer is known, outlining the actions that will be taken and how we will track them and update you if appropriate.

Escalation to the next stage

Your complaint can be escalated to a Stage 2 Formal Review if:

  • Stage 1 Formal Complaint was used, but you are dissatisfied with the outcome.
  • You do not feel that the Stage 1 Formal Complaint response fully answers your complaint.

Stage 2: Formal review

A Stage 2 Formal Review involves a member of our extended leadership team reviewing the Stage 1 Formal Complaint investigation. This officer will be someone who has not been involved in the matter before.

They will conduct a review of your Stage 1 Formal Complaint and our response to it. They will let you know the outcome of their review. This could include:

  • Confirming that the Stage 1 complaint response fully answered your complaint and that this is the council’s final position on the matter, based on the information we have
  • Confirming that the Stage 1 complaint response was not complete and/or that further action could be taken to resolve the matter. Where we are at fault we will apologise and take any further action to answer your complaint and/or resolve the matter for you.

Making a request for a Stage 2 Formal Review

We recommend reporting your request for a Stage 2 Formal Review in writing rather than by phone or in person, this ensures that you can explain your request in your own words:

  • Online: Wherever possible, Stage 2 Formal Reviews should be made using the online form on our complaints page. 
  • By email: complaints@cherwell-dc.gov.uk
  • By post: Complaints, Cherwell District Council, 39 Castle Quay, Banbury, OX16 5FD

If you cannot submit your Stage 2 Formal Review request in writing, you can call on 01295 227001 and speak to one of our customer services colleagues who can submit the request on your behalf.

When making your request please include:

  • Your name and address (or email address)
  • A copy of the reply you received to your Stage 1 Formal Complaint or your Stage 1 Formal Complaint reference number (beginning with COM)
  • Although not required, it may assist us if you can tell us why you are not satisfied with the Stage 1 Formal Complaint response you received, for example which matters that you feel were incorrectly addressed or not covered
  • Any other requirement (for example if you require your response in a particular format)

Please try to be as clear as possible so that we can begin the review promptly. If a review request is unclear, we may need to contact you for more information. If you do not provide the information we need to conduct the review, we may have to refuse the Stage 2 Formal Review.

Timescales for Stage 2 Formal Reviews

We will acknowledge your request for a Stage 2 review within five working days of receiving it. This acknowledgment will include our understanding of your complaint, the outcomes being sought and if applicable, which aspects of your complaint we are not responsible for.

We will send a full response to your request for a Stage 2 review within 20 working days of acknowledging it.

If we cannot meet this deadline, or the complaint is complex, we will contact you to explain why an extension is needed. We will let you know when you can expect a response and where required the suitable intervals or keeping you informed about the complaint progress. In line with LGSCO and HO guidance, any extension will not be more than 20 working days without good reason. 

Some matters will take time to resolve, in these circumstances we will respond to your request for a Stage 2 review as soon as the answer is known, outlining the actions that will be taken and how we will track them and update you if appropriate.

This response will be the council’s final position on the matter, based on the information we have and there is no further escalation process within the council.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
and The Housing Ombudsman (the Ombudsman)

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the Stage 2 Formal Review, you can ask the relevant ombudsman to consider your complaint.

Each Ombudsman has issued a Complaint Handling Code which sets out advice and guidance for councils on how to handle complaints. You can find more information about this on the relevant ombudsman’s website.

The Ombudsman investigates complaints in a fair and independent way - it does not take sides and it’s a free service. They expect you to have given us a chance to deal with your complaint, before you contact them. 

For complaints about the council as a registered provider of social housing

The Housing Ombudsman investigates complaints and resolve disputes involving the tenants and leaseholders of social landlords such as the council. It investigates complaints from residents about landlord’s housing management – for example, property condition and repairs, charges, complaint handling and how a landlord is responding to antisocial behaviour that is affecting a resident in their home. 

For all other complaints

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman looks at individual complaints about councils and some other organisations providing local public services. It also investigates complaints about all adult social care providers (including care homes and home care agencies) for people who self-fund their care.

There are some limits on what the Ombudsman can look at. For example, the Ombudsman may not consider your complaint if you have not been significantly personally affected by the issue you are raising, or if you have a right of appeal to a court or tribunal.