Complaints policy

The Royal Osteoporosis Society is committed to providing the best possible service to all its members and stakeholders. We acknowledge, however, there will be occasions when people may not be happy with some aspect of our service, resources, or events. This policy exists to enable people to tell us when they are unhappy, or indeed when they have any comment they wish to make about the Royal Osteoporosis Society.

Our complaints commitment

All complaints will be taken seriously and dealt with promptly. We will treat individuals with respect and consideration throughout the complaints process. We will use the process to ensure that we improve our service and performance.

What is a complaint?

A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction, either written or spoken. A complaint can be made by an individual or group. You may wish to complain if you are not satisfied with the way you have been treated by or the service you have received from the Royal Osteoporosis Society.

What should I do to complain informally?

You can make your complaint to the member of staff concerned, or to any line manager. Any member of staff will be pleased to tell you who is the most appropriate person to approach. This may be done by telephone, letter, or email. We aim to listen to what you have to say and try to agree a solution with you. We will deal with your complaint immediately; however, there will be occasions when this may not be possible as we may have to conduct a more formal enquiry. If there will be a delay in responding to your complaint, you will be informed, and we will reply as quickly as possible either verbally or in writing as you wish. If you remain dissatisfied with us or with our response you should use the formal procedure outlined below.

What should I do to complain formally?

You may use the formal complaints procedure at any time. You do not have to complain informally first if you believe that your complaint is too serious for that approach.

Attached to this Policy you will find a basic form, which you may use to make your complaint; if you would prefer, you may email, or you may write a letter instead.

If you would prefer to contact us by email you can contact boardsecretary@theros.org.uk

Or you can post your complaint to:

Board Secretary
Royal Osteoporosis Society
St James House
The Square
Lower Bristol Road
Bath
BA2 3BH

Please mark the envelope “Private & Confidential.”

If your complaint involves the Board Secretary, you may address it to the Chief Executive. If your complaint involves the Chief Executive, you may address it to the Chair.

What will happen after I complain?

The Royal Osteoporosis Society will acknowledge receipt of your formal complaint within five working days. This will be done by email or letter, so it is important that you provide us with your correct postal address or email address. This response will tell you what steps will be taken to investigate your complaint.

If your complaint concerns:

a. a member of staff, it will be passed immediately to the appropriate line manager; the Board Secretary will write to you to tell you that this has been done and to explain that our internal inquiry process has begun. The relevant line manager will then write to you with the results of the enquiry.

b. our service, the Director of Services and Influencing will write to you.

c. our resources, (including the website) the Director of Services and Innovation/Head of Marketing and Communications will write to you.

d. our events, the Income and Engagement Director will write to you.

e. a volunteer or support group matter, the Income and Engagement Director will write to you.

f. Royal Osteoporosis Society position statements, the Director of Services and Innovation will write to you.

g. our Fundraising activities, including raffles and lotteries, the Income and Engagement Director will write to you.

We aim to resolve all complaints quickly, and to keep you informed throughout the process. You will receive a full response usually within 28 days; if there will be any further delay, you will be informed.

This communication will include information of what to do if you are still dissatisfied.

Will my complaint be confidential?

Your complaint may be seen by managers or trustees of the Royal Osteoporosis Society, as part of the investigation process but we will make every effort to safeguard your privacy. We keep confidential records of any complaint to assess our performance, individual complaints are not divulged to any other parties, other than, where required, to the Fundraising Regulator. You should be aware, however that if your complaint is specifically about a member of staff or a trustee of the Royal Osteoporosis Society, it will be necessary for that person to be told that a complaint has been lodged against him/her, to allow the investigation to proceed.

What if I am still unhappy – can I appeal?

You can appeal if you are unhappy about an aspect of the formal procedure outlined above, including the final response. You cannot go directly to the appeal stage unless you have used the formal procedure. If you wish to appeal, you should complete the form, which will be attached to the communication sent to you after the formal procedure and return as soon as possible.

What will happen if I appeal?

You will receive acknowledgement of your appeal usually within seven working days, along with information as to when and how it will be dealt with. Your appeal and the original complaint will be considered in detail by the Finance, General Purposes & Audit Committee and you will receive a written response within 14 days of the hearing. The Royal Osteoporosis Society will make every effort to comply with the decision or recommendation of the FGP&A Committee.

What if I am still dissatisfied following an appeal?

If you have followed the above stages and are not satisfied that the complaints procedure has been followed properly and your complaint has not been dealt with fairly, then you can outline the reasons for your dissatisfaction by letter within 21 working days of receiving the FGP&A Committee report to the Chair of the Board to request a review of the complaints handling process, not a further investigation of the complaint.

The Chair of the Board will make arrangements for a review of the complaint handling process and will inform you of how the review will be carried out.

The decision of the process review will be final. The Chair of the Board will write to you within 21 working days of receiving your appeal.

If your complaint is about our raffle and lottery activity

Any complaints regarding the draw can be made directly to the Royal Osteoporosis Society by contacting the Head of Supporter Engagement on 01761 473287 or by email at supporters@theros.org.uk We will respond to initial complaints or queries wherever possible within two working days of receipt of complaint. All complaints and outcomes are recorded.

In the event that a satisfactory outcome can still not be reached, in accordance with the agreed protocol arranged on behalf of members of the Lotteries Council, the matter will be referred to the Independent Betting Adjudication Services (IBAS). IBAS acts as an impartial adjudicator on disputes that arise between gambling operators and their customers:

i. The players will be provided with IBAS referral detail. ii. The outcome of the IBAS intervention will be reported back to the Gambling Commission

A copy of our Responsible Gambling Policy is available upon request by emailing supporters@theros.org.uk

Useful Information

Royal Osteoporosis Society
St James House
The Square
Lower Bristol Road
Bath
BA2 3BH

Telephone: 01761 471771

Senior Leadership Team

Chief Executive: craig.jones@theros.org.uk

Director of Services & Innovation: ruth.wakeman@theros.org.uk

Director of Income & Engagement: vicky.johnson@theros.org.uk

Director of Corporate Services: thom.harvey@theros.org.uk

Review - This policy will be reviewed on an annual basis

COMPLAINT FORM

Please print:

Name:

Address:

Telephone number:

Royal Osteoporosis Society Member: Yes/No

What is your complaint?:

Ideally, what would you like us to do about it?:

Please print your name:

Your Signature:

Date:

Please return to: