Unreasonable complainants protocol

This protocol seeks to ensure that complainants who behave unreasonably are dealt with appropriately and consistently to protect the welfare of our staff and the integrity of our processes.

We recognise the importance of providing excellent customer care for every resident. A key part of excellent customer care is an open, responsive approach to customer complaints. We are committed to dealing with all complaints fairly and impartially, and to making the council’s services as accessible as possible.

We operate a formal complaints policy in line with best practice. The majority of complaints are resolved through our internal policy or investigation by the ombudsman. However, a small number of complainants are not satisfied with the outcome of this process, or with the process itself, and will continue pursuing the matter.

It is recognised that a persistent complainant is not necessarily unreasonable. Just because a complainant is persistent does not make them wrong.