Compliments, Concerns and Complaints Policy

The British Dyslexia Association (BDA) aims to provide a professional, caring and friendly service. We believe, therefore, that it is important that we are made aware of the things we are doing well, but also of the areas that require improvement. It is for this reason that we welcome any feedback that we receive from any of our service users or from members of the public.

The Board of Trustees has approved the following procedure which explains what you should do if you would like to raise issues that have come to your attention.

1. Compliments

We hope that our services and activities are making a positive difference to individuals, communities and across society. Where you have had a positive experience of the BDA please do contact us to let us know the impact our work has had. We would love to hear how our volunteers, staff, information and services have been of use. Please contact the Complaints Officer by letter or email to send us a compliment.

2. Concerns

2.1. The difference between a concern and a complaint

It is recognised that from time to time people may have a concern which may not be a complaint. Therefore, it is helpful to explain the difference between a concern and a complaint:

• A concern may be defined as ‘an expression of worry or doubt over an issue considered to be important for which reassurances are sought’.

• A complaint may be defined as ‘an expression of dissatisfaction however made, about actions taken or a lack of action’.

It is in everyone’s interest that concerns and complaints are resolved at the earliest possible stage. Many issues can be resolved informally, without the need to use the formal stages of the complaints procedure. The BDA takes concerns seriously and will make every effort to resolve the matter as quickly as possible.

2.2. Raising a concern

Where you have a concern about any aspect of the BDA’s services, please raise this with the staff member you are liaising with. They may be able to address your concerns straight away, or arrange a meeting with you to discuss the issue.

All concerns will be dealt with confidentially, although the staff member may need to take notes if they feel the matter may need to be taken further or it may arise again in the future. Any such notes will be kept in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation and may be used as evidence if further investigation is required, or if the concern becomes a formal complaint.

If you have difficulty discussing a concern with a particular member of staff, you may ask for contact details of a member of the Senior Management Team who will respond to your concerns.

3. Formal complaint - Stage 1

If you feel that you did not receive a satisfactory outcome having raised your concern, you should contact the Complaints Officer either by letter or email to raise a formal complaint.

The Complaints Officer will record the date the complaint is received and will acknowledge receipt of the complaint by email within 5 working days. The Complaints Officer will forward your complaint to the relevant member of the Senior Management Team who carry out an investigation. You can find details about our Senior Management Team on our website.

You will receive a formal response to your complaint within 15 working days of the date of the receipt of the complaint. Hopefully this will resolve the matter. However you will also be advised how to escalate your complaint should you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of Stage 1.

Where a complaint concerns a member of the Senior Management Team, the complaint will automatically be escalated to Stage 2.

4. CEO review - Stage 2

If you feel that you did not receive a satisfactory outcome in Stage 1, you should contact the Complaints Officer either by letter or email to escalate the complaint to Stage 2.

The Complaints Officer will record the date the Stage 2 request is received and will acknowledge receipt of the complaint by email within 5 working days. The Complaints Officer will pass your concerns to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) who will investigate the complaint. This may involve:

• Interviewing those involved in the matter

• Reviewing any relevant documentation

• Asking for further information from you

The CEO will provide a formal written outcome of their investigation within 15 working days of the date of the receipt of the Complaint. If the CEO is unable to meet this deadline, they will provide you with an updated and revised response date.

The response will detail any actions taken to investigate the complaint and provide a full explanation of the decision made and the reason(s) for it. Where appropriate, it will include details of actions that the BDA will take to resolve the complaint.

The CEO will advise you how to escalate your complaint should you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of Stage 2.

Where a complaint concerns the CEO or any member of the Board of Trustees, a suitably skilled independent Trustee will be appointed to complete all the actions of Stage 2.

5. Board review - Stage 3

If you feel that you did not receive a satisfactory outcome in Stage 2, you can contact the Complaints Officer to escalate the complaint to Stage 3.

A request to escalate to Stage 3 must be made in writing within 10 working days of receiving the Stage 2 response. Requests received outside this timescale will only be considered in exceptional circumstances. You must state clearly the grounds upon which you consider the outcome of Stage 2 to be unfair or incorrect.

The Complaints Officer will record the date the Stage 3 request is received and will acknowledge receipt of the complaint by email within 5 working days. The Complaints Officer will pass your concerns to the Chair of the Board who will investigate the complaint themselves or nominate a suitable Trustee to do so. This may involve:

• Interviewing those involved in the matter

• Reviewing any relevant documentation

• Asking for further information from you

Once the Chair (or their nominated Trustee) has considered the complaint and all the relevant evidence, they will either:

• Uphold the complaint in whole or in part

• Dismiss the complaint in whole or in part.

If the complaint is upheld in whole or in part, the Chair will identify appropriate action to be taken to resolve the complaint and, where suitable, recommend changes to BDA’s systems or procedures to prevent similar issues in the future.

The Chair (or their nominated Trustee) will provide you with a full explanation of their decision and the reason(s) for it, in writing, within 15 working days of the Stage 3 request. If the Chair (or their nominated Trustee) is unable to meet this deadline, they will provide you with an updated and revised response date.

6. Next steps

If you believe that the BDA has not handled your complaint in accordance with the published complaints procedure or that the BDA has acted unlawfully you can contact the relevant regulator:

• Contact the Fundraising Regulator to complain about:
  • the way you’ve been asked for donations
  • how fundraisers have behaved

You can also complain on behalf of someone else.

• Contact the Advertising Standards Authority to complain about:
  • an advertising campaign you think is offensive, deceptive or inaccurate
  • the amount of emails or mail you get from a charity

You can change how often you get emails, phone calls, texts or post from a charity using the Fundraising Preference Service.

• Complain to the Charity Commission if a charity is, for example:
  • not doing what it claims to do
  • losing lots of money
  • harming people
  • being used for personal profit or gain
  • involved in illegal activity

Contact us

To contact the Complaints Officer please email: complaints@bdadyslexia.org.uk

Or write to:

BDA Complaints Officer
Office 205, Access Business Centre
Willoughby Road,
Bracknell
RG12 8FB

(Approved at BDA Board Meeting on 8th November 2023)