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Making a complaint

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We are here to help you.

Bury Housing Services is committed to delivering excellent services.

If something goes wrong, your feedback helps us to correct the issue and improve. We cannot investigate complaints if legal action has progressed to the courts, as these matters will be resolved by the court.

What’s a Service Request?

A service request is when you ask us to do something, like fix a repair, rearrange a missed appointment, or check on a service we provide.

  • It’s not a complaint.
  • It’s about getting something done.
  • We aim to sort it quickly, this is called early resolution.
  • If you're still unhappy after we try to fix it, you can ask for it to be treated as a formal complaint.

Click here to make a service request 

What’s a Complaint?

A complaint is when you're unhappy with something we’ve done or haven’t done and want us to investigate.

It’s an expression of dissatisfaction about:

  • Delays or missed actions to service requests.
  • The quality of service
  • How staff treated you or your home

Examples of complaints:

  • We didn’t follow our own policies or took too long.
  • We didn’t fix something properly or on time.
  • A staff member was rude or disrespectful.

What’s not a complaint:

  • You’re asking for a service for the first time.
  • Your request is still within the expected time.
  • The issue happened over 12 months ago.
  • It’s about anti-social behaviour (ASB), unless it is regarding the management of a case.
  • It’s a service we don’t manage.
  • It’s a legal matter or insurance claim.

Who Can Complain?

  • Any tenant or leaseholder of Bury Housing Services.
  • Someone else can complain on your behalf we just need written permission. Please see the 'Permission to Discuss' form at the bottom of this page.

How to Make a Complaint

If you’re unhappy with a service we gave in the last 12 months, you can:

  • Complain online 
  • Email us: housingenquiries@bury.gov.uk
  • Visit us: at our housing reception at Bury Town Hall, Knowsley Place, Knowsley Street, Bury, BL9 0ST
  • Call us: 0161 686 8000.
  • Write to us at; Bury Housing Services, Bury Town Hall. Knowsley Place, Knowsley Street, Bury, BL9 0ST
  • During home visit or during a sign-up by an Operative or Officer such as a Housing Officer or Rents Advisor.
  • Face-to-face, during events such as coffee mornings in the community and at our Sheltered and Supported scheme’s.
  • During walkabouts or action days.
  • Via a representative such as a councillor or MP.

What Happens Next?

Stage 1 – First Response

  • We’ll acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days.
  • A Complaints Investigator will respond within 10 working days.
  • If we need more time, we’ll let you know and agree a new date.

Stage 2 – Appeal

  • If you’re still unhappy, you can appeal.
  • It would be helpful to know what you remain unsatisfied with and what you expect to put it right.
  • We’ll acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days.
  • A Head of Service will respond within 20 working days.

I’m still not happy, what do I do?

If you still remain unhappy about your complaint, you have the option to take your complaint to The Housing Ombudsman Service. They will usually expect you to have told us about your complaint and have given us a chance to put things right. They’ll check if we’ve followed the right process and tried to resolve things fairly. The Housing Ombudsman Service can be contacted in the following ways:

Formal Complaint