Primary Cause of Upheld Complaints

We always take complaints seriously and investigate each one thoroughly. Each complaint is seen as a chance to identify where our services may have fallen below expectations and can be used as a chance to learn, so we can carry on improving the services we deliver for you.

Primary cause of upheld complaints Oct 22 – Mar 23

Lessons Learned from Upheld Complaints

Examples of lessons learnt in more detail:

The issue:

We received a complaint from a resident living in one of our newly built homes. Most of the issues raised seemed to be covered under the terms of the after-care service provided by the developer.

How we resolved it:

During the complaint investigation, it became clear that the timescales the developer was working to were longer than we would usually expect our residents to have to wait. We decided to use our own contractors to resolve the issues for the resident, to avoid any further delays. We used the learning from the complaint to make sure future development agreements would avoid a situation like this from arising in future.

The issue:

A resident made a complaint about a faulty communal door at one of our schemes, stating that the door had been faulty for quite some time.

How we resolved it:

The CCHA colleague who investigated the initial queries visited the scheme, as well as consulting the manufacturer, to try to understand the cause of the fault which was stopping the door from opening some of the time. This led to many visits by engineers who could not find a fault, even though residents were still reporting the issue. The complaint investigation uncovered the fact that the door had a ‘reset’ button. When this was pressed, the door would stay closed for a short period before working as normal. The reset button was moved so that it couldn’t be pressed in error anymore, and the door now works as it should.

The issue:

A complaint was received from a resident about the handling of an anti-social behaviour report made to CCHA. The resident felt that they didn’t know what was happening with the case and hadn’t had feedback on any progress to address the issues raised.

How we resolved it:

The complaint investigation triggered a review into the ways we keep residents informed after they have made complaints about ASB. We now give much improved and regular updates to residents. The team is performance managed to make sure these contacts are made for each ASB case we manage.

The issue:

A resident contacted CCHA to make a complaint about their grounds maintenance service, as they felt the service could be improved.

How we resolved it:

CCHA were carrying out regular visits to the site, but there was an area of the scheme fenced off that was only cut back a couple of times a year. The complaint manager worked with the Grounds Maintenance Team to adjust the timings of these maintenance visits, to make sure they were at more effective times of year. The resident was pleased to see that their concerns had been taken on board, and that the grounds of the scheme are now better maintained.

The issue:

A resident made a complaint about the design of their home because their rear garden could only be accessed by walking through their house.

How we resolved it:

The resident kept their garden waste bin at the front of their house and was struggling to carry lawn clippings and other garden waste through the house without making a mess. The complaint manager found that the design of the garden couldn’t reasonably be altered, so found an alternative solution. In agreement with the resident, we provided a composter for them to use to recycle their garden waste instead of having to carry it through the house. This resolved the issue of any mess in the home and has helped recycle the waste for the good of the environment. The learning for CCHA is that innovative solutions like this should be considered in future for complaint resolution.