Complaints, Feedback and Resolution Policy

Better Planning is committed to ensuring that any participant using services or affected by Better Planning’s operations have the right to lodge a complaint and or provide feedback in ways that ensure access and equity, fairness, accountability, and transparency.

This policy applies to all participant’s, providers, employees, contractors, and sub-contractors.

The Complaints Manager is also responsible for monitoring trending in all feedback, complaints, and grievances.

The Board of Better Planning are to ensure that opportunities are provided for people with disability to contribute to the governance of the Organisation and have input into the development of organizational policy and processes relevant to the provision of supports and the protection of participant rights. 

Better Planning view complaints as valuable feedback about our services and an important part of our quality improvement process. Participant feedback can be a useful way to achieving better service, identifying areas that need changing and prevention the same problems from reoccurring.

Better Planning would like to assure participants that there will be no negative consequences if they raise concerns or complaints. Complaints will be managed sensitively, objectively, confidentially, and promptly and the solutions and outcomes will be identified and communicated clearly.

Better Planning will continue to provide services, where appropriate, throughout the resolution of a complaint and the complainant will be kept informed at all stages of the decision-making process.  

Better Planning prides itself on ensuring all employees are trained in Conflict Resolution and Complaints Handling and has a dedicated Complaints Manager who will investigate all incidents and provide feedback in a timely manner.

The organisation will provide a complaints and feedback management procedure that:

• is simple and easy to use.
• is available to all participates and providers via the Better Planning website
• ensures complaints are fairly assessed and responded to promptly.
• is procedurally fair and follows principles of natural justice.
• complies with legislative requirements.

Better Planning Commitment

If a complaint is received, Better Planning will:

• treat the complainant with respect.
• tell the complainant what to expect while the matter is being investigated.
• carry out the complaint handling process in a fair and open way.
• provide reasons for decisions that are made.
• Each complainant is provided with information on the outcome of the investigation, including how incidents involving the participant will been managed.
• protect privacy.
• respect the participants right to access an advocate (including an independent advocate) of their choosing as it is the participants right to have an advocate present.
• Upon request from the participant arrange an Independent Mediation Service of their choice. A Mediation Service can be found at http://www.mediatorlocator.com.au/NSW. Mediation costs will be shared by both parties unless an alternate agreement is made between the complainant and Better Planning.

Confidentiality

At Better Planning, you are assured that all concerns and complaints will be treated with confidentiality, and information used only for the purpose for which it was obtained. Your privacy will be protected throughout the process, with any investigations conducted discreetly. In the investigation of a concern or complaint, information in only shared with staff on a ‘need to know’ basis.

What Is A Complaint

Broadly speaking, a complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction with a Better Planning or Service Provider support or service, including how a previous complaint was handled, for which a response or resolution is explicitly or implicitly expected.

What Can a Complaint or Feedback Be About?

A complaint and or feedback can be provided to Better Planning about the delivery of Better Planning services or the behaviour of personnel. From time to time, Better Planning consults with the sector to determine a policy position or to gauge views about an issue. A person may lodge a complaint or provide feedback if a consultation process was found to be not followed or if the process was flawed; but not simply because the outcome of the consultation disagrees with their position.

Better Planning utilises both registered and non-registered NDIS service providers that operate disability support services. Better Planning does not have the authority to investigate complaints about service providers. A complaint regarding a service provider should be discussed with the organisation directly. Better Planning will assist the participant with this process if requested.

Making a Complaint?

A complaint can be made to Better Planning by writing, email, or verbally. 

Phoning: 1300 318 056

Mail: Atten: Complaints Manager

Better Planning Pty Ltd

POBOX W67

Wollongong West

NSW 2500

Email: enquiry@betterplanning.com.au

Completing a Complaint Form on the Better Planning website at www.betterplanning.com.au;

The Participant Can Contact the NDIS Commission Directly

The participant may also contact the NDIS Commission to make a complaint without notifying Better Planning, as it is your right. Better planning full supports the participants decision to contact NDIS Commission on 1800 035 544.

Positive Feedback

Positive feedback is always welcome. When the participant wishes to provide positive feedback, it can be done by following the same process as making a complaint. 

• If the positive feedback concerns an employee, it will be forwarded to the HR Manager who will contact the employee’s manager and include a copy of the feedback report on the employee’s personal file. 
• If it is concerning a service provider, the feedback will be forwarded by the Operation Manager to the Service provider.
•  All positive feedback is to follow the same reporting and record-keeping process as per a complaint. 

• BP-CM-01 Complaints, Feedback and Resolution
• BP-CMF-01 Incident and Complaint Report Form
• BP-CMF-02 Feedback Form
• BP-CMF-03 Record Of Mediation Form
• BP-CMF-04 Record Of Conversation Form
• BP-CMF-05 Complaints & Conflicts  Register
• BP-CMF-06  Participant Feedback Register

The Complaints Manager is also responsible for monitoring trending in all feedback, complaints, and grievances.

All complaints received including anonymously lodged will be subjected to the same complaints management process and outlined in this document. 

The person responsible for managing the complaint in the first instance will be determined as follows. 

If the complaint is about:

• A product or service delivered by service providers; the complaint will normally be dealt with by the Operations Manager.
• A staff member, the complaint will normally be dealt with by the HR Manager.
• A senior staff member, the complaint will normally be dealt with by the QHSE&R Manager.

Regardless of who receives and or is managing the complaint, it is a mandatory requirement that it be to be reported to the Complaints Manager.

Where a Better Planning Employees makes a complaint concerning another employee, it will be dealt with in accordance with Better Planning Grievance and Dispute Resolution Policy.

Contact details are available on the Better Planning website. The Complaints Manager receives all written complaint and is responsible for managing the complaint or directing it to the appropriate person.

How to Respond to A Complaint

In responding to a complaint, the Four A’s of successful resolution is the preferred approach to be used by Better Planning. 

The approach recognises that people who make a complaint are generally seeking one or more of these four outcomes:

• Acknowledgment 
• Answers
• Action
• Apology

Acknowledgement

In many ways this is the most important step as it sets the tone for the rest of the process. Making a complaint can be difficult for people. It is important that people feel that their concerns have been understood and that the impact on them is recognised. 

Acknowledgment can include:

• Genuinely listening to the person without interrupting 
• Empathising
• Making sure the person feels comfortable talking to you and being aware of whether you are feeling defensive and how this may be perceived.
• Acknowledging how the situation has affected the person.
• Rectifying by asking the person what a good outcome would look like for them, and 
• Notifying the person regularly and promptly of the steps that will be taken in response to their complaint, ensuring commitments are not made that can’t be fulfilled.

Answers

People want to know why something has or has not happened, or why a decision was made. People need to understand what has happened in order to better understand how they can move on to resolving their concern. Answers should include a clear explanation that is relevant to the concern raised but ONLY if you know the facts.

Actions

People want you to fix or take steps to address their concerns. This may be in relation to their specific complaint, or more broadly around systems to ensure that similar issues won’t occur for other people. Sometimes you will not be able to fix the issue raised, but you can initiate actions to prevent it from happening again. Taking action to prevent recurrence may validate the concern for the person making the complaint. A good way to approach actions is to use an action plan, which includes:

• What will be done?
• Who will do it?
• When it will be done by.
• How the progress of the complaint and outcomes will be communicated to the person making the complaint and the participant, and
• How the progress of the complaint actions and implementation will be oversighted. 

The action plan may be formulated with the person who raised the complaint and any participant affected by an issue raised in the complaint. It is important to follow up with the person who made the complaint, and any affected participant, to make sure they are satisfied with the actions being undertaken, and that the actions relate appropriately to their concerns. This is also a good opportunity to seek their feedback on the complaint’s resolution process. 

Apology 

An apology may be part of, or the sole outcome a person is seeking when they make a complaint. 

It is important to consider who should provide the apology and the form of the apology. A genuine apology can be a meaningful step, however a poorly provided apology can make the situation worse. An apology should often come from the person complained about, as well as a more senior member of the organisation, for the person complaining to be satisfied that their concerns were taken seriously. 

When providing an apology, it is helpful to consider:

• Timeliness.
• Sincerity.
• Being specific and to the point.
• Accepting responsibility for what occurred, and the impacts caused.
• Explaining the circumstances and causes (without making excuses), and
• Summarising key actions agreed to because of the complaint.

A genuine and timely apology is a powerful healing force and a way to separate the past from the future, to put things to rest and get on with any agreed new arrangements.

Anonymously Lodging A Complaint

Better Planning understands that it is important for participants or providers to be able to make complaints anonymously. Anonymous complaints can be made in writing, email, or verbally or by using the Better Planning Website.

Complaints Management

A flow chart has been attached in Annex that helps outlines the complaints process for Better Planning.

Registering the complaint:

• Use the Four A’s of successful resolution approached as outlined above.
• Complete BP-CMF-01 Incident and Complaint Report Form
• Notify the complaint manager who will entre it into the Better Planning complaints register.
• Informing the complainant that their complaint has been received and providing them with information about the process and timeframe.

Investigating the complaint: 

• Examining the complaint within 5 working days of the complaint being received
• Review the Participant’s personal level of Vulnerability this will assist with the amount of detail and how best communicate or address any immediate issues. (see table below)
• Informing the complainant by letter within 10 working days of the complaint being received of the action to investigate and resolve it and the expected timeframe for resolution.

Resolving the complaint:

• As far as possible, complaints or appeals will be investigated and resolved within 20 working days of being received. If this timeframe cannot be met, the complainant will be informed of the reasons and of the alternative timeframe for resolution.
• Informing the complainant of the outcome and any options for further action if required

Dissatisfaction with the resolution

• If the participant is not happy with the outcome, the matter will be escalated to the Chief Executive Officer, if it has not already.
• If, after exhausting the options above, and the participant is still not satisfied with the outcome of a complaint, there are several external agencies that may be able to help.

These include:

NSW Ombudsman.

This agency handles complaints about community and disability service providers in NSW.

Web: www.ombo.nsw.gov.au

Phone: 02 9286 1000

Toll Free (outside Sydney metro): 1800 451 524

Commonwealth Ombudsman

Telephone: 1300 362 072

Address: Suite 2, level 16 580 George St, Sydney

NSW Quality and Safeguards Commission

Telephone: 1800 035 544

Email: feedback@ndiscommission.gov.au

Website: www.ndiscommission.gov.au

NSW Department of Family and Community Services

Telephone: 02 9377 600 (FACS Head Office)

Website: www.facs.nsw.gov.au/about/contact

For your nearest Community Services Centre: www.facs.nsw.gov.au/about/contact/csc

National Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline

This Hotline is a free service which receives reports of abuse and neglect of people with disability.

Web: http://www.dnc.org.au/

Phone: 1800 880 052

Health Care Complaints Commission

This agency handles complaints about health service providers.

Web: www.hccc.nsw.gov.au

Phone: 02 9219 7444

Toll Free (NSW): 1800 043 159

Email: hccc@hccc.nsw.gov.au

Australian Human Rights Commission

This commission investigates and conciliates complaints of a discrimination and breaches of human rights.

Web: www.humanrights.gov.au

Phone: 02 9284 9600

National Information Service: 1300 656 419

TTY: 1800 620 241

Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW

You can complain to the ADB about discrimination, harassment, and vilification.

Phone: 02 9268 5544

Toll Free (regional NSW only): 1800 670 812

Email: adbcontact@agd.nsw.gov.au

Aged Care Complaints Commissioner

This is a free service for anyone to raise concerns about the quality of care of services delivered to people receiving aged care services funded by the Australian Government.

Web: www.agedcarecomplaints.gov.au

Phone: 1800 550 552

Fair Trading NSW

Web: www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au

Phone: 13 32 20

Record-Keeping

A register of complaints will be kept by Better Planning. The register will be maintained by the Complaints Manager and will record the following for each complaint:

• Registration Number.
• Date lodged.
• Details of the complainant and the nature of the complaint
• Reported By
• Investigation findings and recommendations
• Lessons arising from the complaint.
• Indication of complainant being notified of outcome.

Copies of all correspondence and other materials received by Better Planning in connection with complaints will be kept for 7 years.

The complaints register, and files will be confidential, and access is restricted to the Complaints Manager, QHSE&R Manager, Operation Manager and the Chief Executive Officer.

A summary of complaints and appeals will be kept by Better Planning and maintained by the Complaints Manager. The Complaints Manager will be responsible for preparing reports on complaints to the Chief Executive Officer and the Better Planning Board and maintaining records (including on complaints against the Chief Executive).

• BP-GF-18 Complaints Register

After a Complaint Has Been Dealt With

Better Planning is to contact the participant who made the complaint for feedback around the finalisation of their complaint, and their response to any follow up or implementation of actions.

Things to consider: 

• What was the complaint about? What service, policy or procedure did it call into question? 
• What was the experience for the person who made the complaint, or for any affected participant? Were the issues resolved for them?
• What information did the complaint provide that will allow you to identify and improve those services, policies and procedures and your organisation as a whole?
• How effectively did you communicate with the person who made the complaint, any affected participants, affected staff and other stakeholders?
• Do people using your services, their families, carers, and friends require more or improved information about their rights and the complaints process? Does the person who made the complaint feel more comfortable about speaking up in the future? 
• Does anything need to change in your complaints handling system or approach to dealing with complaints?
• Do staff require further training?
• Did the handling of the complaint reflect your stated values and expectations for complaint handling? Or was the complaint perceived as something negative that needed to be dealt with as quickly as possible