As your local Council, we are committed to providing high-quality services. If something goes wrong or you are unhappy with any of our services, please tell us.
We regard a complaint as: an expression of dissatisfaction by one or more members of the public about the local authority's action or lack of action, or about the standard of service provided by or on behalf of the local authority.
Confidentiality
What can I complain about?
You can complain about things like:
- delays in responding to your enquiries and requests
- failure to provide a service
- quality of service provided
- incorrect application of a Council policy
- attitude of, or treatment by, a Council employee
- failure to follow proper procedure
What can't I complain about?
- A routine first-time request for a service or information.
- A request for compensation from the Council.
- Where there is a legal right to appeal a decision you are unhappy with, such as housing benefit, planning decisions or school placing requests. In such cases you will be given information on how to appeal.
- Complaints about Councillors.
- A complaint where you or the Council has started legal proceedings or has taken court action.
- Complaints to do with planning applications that are still being considered, unless it concerns an aspect of service delivery.
- A complaint that has already been heard by a court or tribunal.
- Insurance claims.
- A request for information in terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.
- A request for an explanation on the application of the law.
- A complaint that is an issue that happened more than 6 months ago (unless there are special circumstances).
What you can't complain about using this form
There are some things we can't deal with through our complaints handling procedure.
We have included links to direct you to further information on how to follow up your enquiry:
- Claiming compensation
- Complaints concerning Councillors
- Planning applications that are still being considered
- Actions of your neighbours in local authority housing because of noise or antisocial behaviour
- Areas that are covered by a right of appeal, such as:
Different types of complaint
Education complaints
Due to the size of the pupil population, schools have ongoing, sometimes daily contact with parents and carers when issues can be raised. Additional guidance for Headteachers regarding complaints has therefore been developed to ensure a proportionate approach to the complaints handling in schools. Complaints to schools will be treated as a Stage 1 when it requires a response or action at Headteacher or school Senior Management Team level.
Additional Support for Learning - Resolving disagreements
The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (as amended) introduced ways of resolving disagreements where a child or young person has additional support needs. These include discussions with the school/nursery, independent mediation, applying for dispute resolution or making a referral to the Additional Support Needs Tribunals for Scotland.
Further information is available in our information sheet on resolving disagreements (PDF, 52 KB).
Care complaints
If your complaint relates to a care service we provide through our social work services, you can choose whether to complain to us or the Care Inspectorate by emailing enquiries@careinspectorate.gov.scot or phoning 0345 600 9527.
Council housing complaints
If you are a tenant of the Council and you are unhappy about the services you receive or have issues about the way we are operating, you can use our complaints procedure to report your concerns.
Child-friendly complaints
If you are a young person aged 17 years or under making a complaint, or an adult making a complaint on behalf of a young person or about an issue that affects them, we will use an enhanced child-friendly complaints process.
This process ensures the young person's views are heard and considered and follows the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman's Child-Friendly Complaints Handling Principles.
How we deal with complaints
| Stage | Description |
|---|---|
| Stage 1 - Frontline Resolution | We aim to resolve complaints as quickly as possible. This could mean an on-the-spot apology or explanation if something has clearly gone wrong, and action to resolve the problem within five working days unless there are exceptional circumstances. Where we can't resolve your concern at this point, or if you are unhappy with the outcome of our action, of if we consider the matter is serious or complex, we will handle your concern as an investigation as the next stage in our process. |
| Stage 2 - Investigation | Stage 2 deals with complaints that have not been resolved at Stage 1 and those that are serious or complex and require detailed investigation. An Investigating Officer will be allocated to your complaint and will discuss your complaint details and the expected outcomes with you. We will acknowledge your Stage 2 complaint within three working days and respond within 20 working days, or where this is not possible, we will agree revised timescales with you and keep you updated on progress. |
How to make a complaint
Online
You can use this form to let us know if:
- you are unhappy about something we have done or not done
- we have failed to provide a service or provided it to your satisfaction
- we have not followed correct procedures
Contact our Customer Services Centre
Our Customer Service Advisors are available to log a complaint on your behalf, Monday to Friday from 8.45am to 5pm.
- Email CustomerComplaints@pkc.gov.uk
- Telephone the Customer Service Centre on 01738 475000
- Write to the Customer Service Centre, Perth and Kinross Council, Pullar House, 35 Kinnoull Street, Perth, PH1 5GD
When complaining, tell us:
- your full name and address
- as much as you can about the complaint
- what has gone wrong
- how you want us to resolve the matter
We value all customer feedback and use it to help us improve our services. We also appreciate hearing from you when we get things right, as it helps us acknowledge our staff for their hard work. If you would like to leave a compliment, please use our online compliments form.
Getting help to make your complaint
We understand that you may be unable, or reluctant, to make a complaint yourself. We accept complaints from the representative of a person who is dissatisfied with our service. We can take complaints from a friend, relative, or an advocate, if you have given them your consent, in writing, to complain for you. We will ask you to complete a mandate if this is required.
You can find out about advocates in your area by contacting the Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance by phoning 0131 5566 443 or visiting the Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance website.
We are committed to making our complaints service easy to use for all members of the community. In line with our statutory equalities duties, we will always ensure that reasonable adjustments are made to help customers access and use our services.
If you have trouble putting your complaint in writing, or want this information in another language or format, such as large font, or Braille, tell us in person using any of the contact details below:
- Telephone the Customer Service Centre on 01738 475000
- Email us at CustomerComplaints@pkc.gov.uk
- Write to the Customer Service Centre, Perth and Kinross Council, Pullar House, 35 Kinnoull Street, Perth, PH1 5GD
What if I'm still not happy?
If you're still not happy after you've been through our complaints process, you can ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to look into your complaint. You can contact the SPSO at any time for advice, but they won't normally investigate a case until the Council's complaints procedure has been completed.
The SPSO can be contacted by visiting the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman website, phoning 0800 377 7330 or by writing to Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, Freepost EH641, Edinburgh, EH3 0BR.
The SPSO publishes decision and investigation reports about complaints involving Perth and Kinross Council which it has investigated on its website.
Council housing complaints
If you feel that our response to your complaint is unsatisfactory you can report this to the Scottish Housing Regulator.
Make a public liability claim
Managing Unreasonable Demands
Child-friendly complaints handling process guidance
