Putting things right: the Housing Ombudsman Service’s new complaints code

If you have an issue about Eastlight, then we want to hear about it!

We take customer complaints seriously – not only because we want to put things right, but also because we want to learn from any mistakes and ensure we don’t repeat them.

In July, the Housing Ombudsman Service published a new Complaint Handling Code setting out good practice. Housing associations like Eastlight should ensure complaints are handled quickly and use learnings from them to drive service improvements.

Key features include a universal definition for complaints, increased accessibility and awareness of complaint procedures, clear exclusions, recommendations on the process and timescales for complaints, and a clear focus on resolution.

At Eastlight, we are a Community Gateway which aims to empower residents, and therefore welcome the new code and have carried out a self-assessment.

We are pleased to already be complying in almost all the sections and have identified three areas where we can improve.

These are introducing the standardised definition of a complaint, changes to the adjustment policy and involving residents in the third stage of decision making. All three will be in place by February 2021.

Our self-assessment can be found here.

A copy of the code can be found here.

You can make a complaint by clicking here: Feedback & Complaints