When dealing with complaints we will endeavour to:
We aim to respond to all complaints and escalated complaints as quickly as possible. However, if this is not possible, we will update you and provide an estimate of the time it will take us to respond in full.
If you are not happy about an element of our work, please let the colleague you are dealing with know directly.
To help us to resolve the issue efficiently and fairly, please provide the following information:
We appreciate that sometimes you might want to make a complaint anonymously. We will take steps to investigate anonymous complaint as far as we can, but providing your details makes it easier for us to fully investigate the complaint, verify information and update you on the progress of our investigations. You can ask us to keep your identity confidential and specify any aspects of the complaint that contain sensitive information.
Complaints should usually be made within three months of the events being complained about. This is because if more than three months have passed since the event complained about, it may not be possible for us to investigate the complaint fairly. We may agree to investigate complaints made after more than three months if you explain why you did not make the complaint sooner, and we think we are still able to deal with the complaint fairly.
Sometimes we may not be able to deal with your complaint, for example if the complaint relates to someone else and we were not involved in the issues you are complaining about, or if we have already exhausted our procedure for dealing with the complaint and you are not satisfied with the final outcome.
We will always try to deal with your complaint quickly and informally first.
If we are unable to resolve the complaint informally, you are not satisfied with the response, or you would like to speak to someone else, you can ask for your complaint to be dealt with as a formal complaint.
We will acknowledge formal complaints as soon as reasonably possible after we receive them and will aim to respond fully within 20 normal working days of that acknowledgement. Sometimes there may be good reasons why we need more time to respond to your complaint, for example if the complaint is received close to a holiday period, if a key member of staff is away or if we need to do more investigation, in which case we will let you know our amended response times.
Formal complaints will be investigated and responded to by an appropriate member of staff, depending on what the complaint is about.
Where a complaint relates to an individual, we will usually inform them of the complaint made against them and give them an opportunity to respond. However, there are exceptions to this so please let us know if you have any concerns when you send us your complaint.
Once our investigation is complete, we will tell you the outcome of your complaint. If your complaint is upheld, we will explain the steps we are taking to put things right.
If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, you can request that it is escalated. The complaint will be progressed to somebody else, usually a member of our Senior Leadership Team or a Trustee, to investigate it for you, independently of the previous reviewer. In this case, we will again acknowledge receipt as soon as reasonably possible and aim to respond fully within 25 normal working days of that acknowledgement. If we need longer than this to respond, we will let you know our amended response times.
If, following a second investigation of your complaint, you are still unsatisfied with our response and feel it merits further investigation, you may wish to consider referring your complaint to the Charity Commission. You will find information about the kind of complaints the Commission can involve itself with, here: https://www.gov.uk/complain-about-charity.
If your complaint relates to fundraising, and you’re not satisfied with the outcome of the investigation, you may also refer the complaint to the Fundraising Regulator within two months of the response you receive from The Sutton Trust. Further information is available on the Fundraising Regulator’s website here: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/complaints/make-complaint.
If your complaint relates to data protection issues and you are unsatisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you may refer the complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office. Further information is available on the Information Commissioner’s Office’s website here: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/.
We will usually keep records of complaints we receive for at least 24 months from the date that the complaint was made (except where data protection law requires otherwise).
Please see our privacy policy for more information: https://www.suttontrust.com/contact-us/privacy-policy/.
The Sutton Trust aims to be fully compliant with GDPR. Any complaints regarding The Sutton Trust’s use of personal data should be sent to [email protected]
Please see our privacy notice for more information.