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Complaints policy

Confidentiality

All complaints received will be dealt with confidentially and in accordance with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998, subject to the need to disclose information as required by law.

How to complain to us

If you wish to make a complaint, you can do so by email or letter. Complaints can be received via [email protected] or to our registered address 63/66 Hatton Garden, Fifth Floor Suite 23, London, EC1N 8LE.

Complaints should be submitted as soon as possible following the issue arising and in any event no more than three months later. 

Complaints submitted outside this time frame will be dealt with at the discretion of the Board, and only when it is fair to do so in light of the passage of time.

We do not accept anonymous complaints. We will not entertain complaints which are simply objections to the expression of gender critical beliefs. 

How we will respond to your complaint

We have a two-stage complaints-handling process:

Stage 1

This is the first opportunity for us to resolve your complaint. We expect the majority of complaints to be resolved at this stage. On receipt of your complaint the Administrator will investigate the issue you raise, try to find a resolution, identify any learning and then respond to you. 

  • Your complaint will be logged 
  • An acknowledgment will be sent within five working days 
  • You will receive a full response within 20 days
  • If you are satisfied with the response the case will be closed
  • If you are unhappy with the response you can request for it to be reviewed.  You have 20 days to request such a review. Requests outside that timescale will be dealt with at the discretion of the board. 

Stage 2

If you are dissatisfied with the response at stage 1, you may request a review. This will be carried out by the Chief Executive/Chair/trustee board members (depending on who the complaint is about – see below). Your request, together with all subsequent correspondence relating to it, should be raised again via the [email protected] email address or by post and it will be forwarded to the appropriate person. 

  • Acknowledgment of your request for review will be sent within five days
  • Your complaint will be sent to the  Chief Executive/Chair/trustee board members as appropriate – you will receive a full response within 20 days
  • If you are satisfied with the response the case will be closed, lesson learnt. 

Who will handle the complaint

General complaints are handled by the Administrator at Stage 1 and by the Chief Executive at Stage 2.

If your complaint is about a named member of staff or volunteer, Stage 1 will be handled by the Chief Executive; and Stage 2 by the Chair.

If your complaint is about the Chief Executive, Stage 1 will be handled by the Chair; and Stage 2 will be handled by two other trustee board members. 

If your complaint is about a trustee board member, Stage 1 will be handled by the Chair; and Stage 2 will be handled by two other trustee board members.  

At each stage it will help us to resolve your complaint quickly if you can give us as much clarity and detail as possible, including providing any documents and correspondence, and stating that you are making a complaint. If we do not have all the details required to deal with the complaint, we may contact you and ask you for further information.

Extending time limits

We aim to complete our investigation into all complaints received about our service within the timescales set out above. However, in a limited number of cases, for example if a complaint is very complex or requires further breakdown, it may be necessary to extend the time limit to ensure we have all the information necessary to deal with it. If this is the case, we will keep you informed of progress with the investigation and the reasons for the delay, and inform you of next steps. 

If you are still dissatisfied

We would hope to have settled the issue to your satisfaction, but if you are still not happy with our response you are able to raise the matter with the Charity Commission here.

Remedies

If we get things wrong we will act to:

  • accept responsibility and apologise
  • explain what went wrong and why
  • put things right by making any changes required
  • learn lessons from mistakes and change policies and practices where proportionate and sensible to do so.

The action we take to put matters right (i.e. redress) in response to a complaint can include any combination of the remedies set out in the list below. The general principle we follow is that complainants should, so far as possible, be put in the position they would have been in, had things not gone wrong. 

The remedy applied needs to be proportionate and appropriate to the failure and take into account what redress people seek when they complain. An apology is generally the most appropriate action, but other action may also be necessary in some circumstances.

List of potential remedies

  • A full apology, explaining what happened and/or what went wrong. (An apology is not an acceptance of liability under Section 2 of the Compensation Act 2006)
  • Remedial action, which may include reviewing or changing a decision
  • Putting things right (for example a change of procedure to prevent future difficulties of a similar kind, either for the complainant or others)
  • Training for our staff and volunteers.

Recording complaints 

Complaint details, outcomes and actions taken are recorded by us and used to improve our operations. We record all complaints we receive and collate data from them to help us understand what types of problems are most prevalent, and how well we are doing to resolve them.

We value your feedback and expect to use it to help us to: 

  • get things right in the future if we have not done so already
  • be more open and accountable 
  • act fairly and proportionately 
  • seek continuous improvement

We will handle your information so that it is only processed and retained appropriately and legally, in line with data-protection legislation.

Vexatious and repetitive complaints, and unreasonable or abusive behaviour

Unreasonable or abusive complaint behaviour can place strain on time and resources and can be stressful for the staff and volunteers who have to deal with these complex and challenging issues.

Deciding whether a complaint is vexatious requires us in each case to take into account the context and history of the complaint. We will consider whether the complaint is likely to cause unjustified distress, disruption or irritation. In particular, we will consider the following issues: 

  • Could the complaint fairly be seen as obsessive? 
  • Is the complaint harassing or causing distress to Sex Matters staff or volunteers? 
  • Does the complaint appear to be designed to cause disruption or annoyance? 
  • Does the complaint lack any serious purpose or value? 

The concern we will address is whether a complaint is vexatious in terms of the effect of the request on us and not whether the applicant is personally vexatious.

By its ordinary meaning, the term “vexatious” refers to activity that “is likely to cause distress or irritation, literally to vex a person to whom it is directed”.

For a complaint to be vexatious, we will consider whether there is a proper or justified cause for it. We will examine not only the complaint itself, but also its context and history. That context may include other complaints made by the applicant to us (whether complied with or refused), the number and subject matter of the complaints, and the history of other dealings between the complainant and ourselves. The effect a complaint will have may be determined as much, or indeed more, by that context as by the complaint itself. 

Where complaints are deemed vexatious, the complainant will be notified in writing that no further correspondence will be entered into on the matter in question. 

Where unreasonable or abusive behaviour is determined, the complainant will be notified in writing that no further contact will be undertaken, and this will apply to all Sex Matters contacts.

All incidents of harassment or aggression will be documented and referred to the trustees. In appropriate circumstances these matters may be referred to the police and the Trustees may consider taking appropriate legal action against the complainant, if necessary, without prior warning.