Complaints, suggestions and feedback
PRHA aims to provide high quality services to its residents. We rely on both positive and negative feedback from you to achieve this. Our Complaints Policy, available Here (Click), is intended to provide you with a way to:
- Report situations where you are dissatisfied with our services, staff our procedures so that they can be resolved (complaints)
- Inform us of ways in which we can improve our services and procedures (suggestions)
- Provide positive feedback that we can use to further inform the development of our services and procedures (feedback)
Information on performance and useful resources
A number documents and useful resources are available from the links found throughout this webpage. To assist with making it easier to access these documents the links are also provided below in a single list.
Our 2024 Annual Complaints Self-assessment Here (Click)
Our Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report 2024 Here (Click)
The Board’s response to PRHA’s 2024 Annual Report and Self-Assessment Here (Click)
Our Complaints Policy Here (Click)
Our Reasonable Adjustments Policy Here (Click)
Our Unacceptable Behaviour Policy Here (Click)
The Housing Ombudsman’s website (for information on The Code).https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/
Changes to the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaints Handling Code
From 1st April 2024 the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaints Handling Code (“The Code”) became statutory. This means that like all other social landlords, PRHA is now required to submit our Annual Self-Assessment and our Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report directly to the Housing Ombudsman for their review and scrutiny. They will review these as part of their determination that all social landlords are complying with The Code.
Alongside the Self-Assessment and Annual Report, each social landlord must publish a response from their governing body to the Self-Assessment and Annual Report (also required to be submitted to the Housing Ombudsman). All three documents are available for our residents, tenants and stakeholders to download via the links in the section above.
Making a complaint
Things to consider before making a complaint
- If you are reporting Anti-Social Behaviour please refer to our page on Reporting Anti-Social Behaviour which explains how staff will work to support you with the issues you are reporting.
- If you are reporting a repair for the first time, please refer to our page on Reporting Repairs.
- Complaints about PRHA services should be made within twelve months of the issue occurring. However in exceptional circumstances our Policy will allow for complaints received outside of this period to be responded to.
Making a complaint
If you are not happy with any aspect of our services please let us know. We want to make it as easy for you as possible to raise a complaint. All residents, tenants and service users have the choice of making their complaint using the method that best suits their circumstances.
This means that we do not require complaints to be sent to us by using a complaints form (unless that is your chosen method) and that complaints can be made verbally as well as in writing. They can also be raised via a chosen third party or advocate.
Verbal complaints can be made by speaking with a member of staff directly or by telephone, or by calling our Head Office on 020 7920 7300. Written complaints can be sent to us via email, letter or complaints form sent to our registered postal address, via our feedback@prha.net email address, or handed directly to a staff member.
You can download a copy of our Complaints Policy Here (Click)
To download a copy of the PRHA Complaints form click Here (Click)
Support when making a complaint
If you would like support to make your complaint your housing officer, keyworker or project manager will be able to help you.
Complaints handling performance and learning from complaints
The lessons we learn from complaints are key in improving our services and demonstrating that we are listening to our residents and tenants. In support of this we review the complaints and feedback that we receive and publish the learning as part of our regular reporting back to our stakeholders. Until now we have done this via our Complaints Review Reports, with each report providing information including:
- A breakdown of formal complaints received in the period, by department
- A breakdown of formal complaints received in the period, by main type
- The number of complaints that were escalated to Stage 2 of our process
- The number of complaints that were closed within the timescales governed by our Complaints Policy and the Housing Ombudsman’s Code
- How complaints received in the period have changed the services we provide (learning from complaints)
You can read a copy of PRHA’s latest Complaints Review Report Here (Click)
We have decided to continue producing the regular Complaints Review Reports to provide timely summary information about PRHA’s performance and the learning taken from complaints during each year. However from 2024 onwards we are also publishing a full Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report to meet the requirements of The Code and to provide our residents, tenants and stakeholders with more detailed information.
The 2024 Annual Report is available Here (Click)
PRHA’s Self-Assessment (Housing Ombudsman Complaints Handling Code)
The Housing Ombudsman requires all Housing Associations to annually assess their complaints handling policy and procedures against the Ombudsman’s Complaints Handling Code using their self-assessment template, and to publish the Self-Assessment on their website. Our 2024 Self-Assessment is available Here (Click)
From 1st April 2024, all Self-Assessments are also required to be submitted to the Housing Ombudsman for review and to ensure compliance with The Code.
For more information about the Complaints Handling Code you can visit the Housing Ombudsman Service website: https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/
Getting help and support from the Housing Ombudsman
If you have raised a complaint with PRHA that has gone through both stages of our internal complaints procedure (Stage 1 and Stage 2) and are not happy with the response received you are able to refer your complaint formally to the Housing Ombudsman. The Ombudsman may then chose to investigate the complaint and to support you in reaching an appropriate resolution with PRHA.
The Housing Ombudsman is however also available to provide advice and guidance about a complaint you are making or wish to make at any point during the process (but will not be able to formally take on your complaint until after is has been through both stages of our procedure).
If you wish to contact the Housing Ombudsman you can do so using the contact details below:
- Online complaints form (available from the Housing Ombudsman’s website at www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk )
- Contact via phone: 0300 111 3000
- Contact via email: info@housing-ombudsman.org.uk
- Postal address: Housing Ombudsman Service, PO Box 1484, Unit D, Preston PR2 0ET.
We aim to satisfactorily resolve your complaint quickly but should that not be the case or there is an unacceptable delay in doing so or the complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction you can send it to PRHA’s Complaints & Compliance Team. Call them on 0207 920 7300.
You can find a copy of our Complaints Policy above.
You can also speak to your housing officer, key worker or service manager for advice and support with the process of contacting the Housing Ombudsman.
