The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) (external link)

The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) discharges its existing regulatory complaints responsibilities under the Care Standards Act 2000, and from April 2005 under the provisions of the Health & Social Care (Community Health & Standards) Act 2003, with respect to complaints about social services.
The CSCI incorporates the work formerly done by:

• The Social Services Inspectorate (SSI)
• SSI/Audit Commission Joint Review Team
• The National Care Standards Commission (NCSC).

The CSCI has a much wider remit than its predecessor organisations. It brings together the inspection, regulation and review of all social care services into one organisation for a more rational and integrated system. The CSCI has a duty to monitor the quality and effectiveness of local arrangements operated by care service providers, and to use its powers and procedures to investigate complaints.

Both the Healthcare Commission and CSCI have equivalent roles in relation to complaints about NHS and social services respectively.

The CSCI will have a duty to monitor the quality and effectiveness of local arrangements operated by care service providers, and to use its powers and procedures to investigate complaints. CSCI will also assume responsibility for the independent review of complaints concerning local authority social services departments.

Social Services Complaints Procedure
In 2004 CSCI circulated a consultation paper entitled ‘An Independent Voice’ as part of the revision of complaints procedures. That paper proposed the transfer of responsibility for the review stage (Stage 3) of the complaints procedures from local authorities to CSCI. These proposals have been withdrawn for the moment and Stage 3 will continue to be a local authority responsibility.

Proposals for a reformed social services complaints procedure received Parliamentary approval as part of the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003.  Regulations which form part of the legislative basis for the complaints procedure came into force on 1 September 2006. The regulations impose time-limits on making complaints, new timescales for handling stages of the process, and greater independence at the final review panel stage. Guidance to support the regulations has also been issued.

The Department of Health consultation 'Listening to People' (external link)
identified key areas for improvement and through a Department of Health Social Services Complaints Working Group, involving national representatives from NCOG, ADSS, LGA, various independent groups and the new Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI),  proposals were developed for a more consistent and effective procedure for handling complaints, providing more satisfactory outcomes for service users, carers and their representatives, and building on identified areas in need of improvement. These proposals formed the basis for the consultation undertaken by the Department 'Learning From Complaints' October 2004. Consultation ran until 10 January 2005.

Guidance

Local Authority Social Services Complaints (England) Regulations 2006 Statutory Instrument 2006 No.1681 (external link)
These Regulations set out the procedure for the handling of complaints made on or after 1st September 2006 about local authority social services.

Regulation 3 describes when the duty on the local authority to handle a complaint under these regulations arises.

Regulation 4 provides who can make a complaint under the Regulations. It allows a complaint to be made either by the service user (or prospective service user) or, in certain circumstances, by another person on his behalf.

Regulation 5 provides that complaints will not be considered under these Regulations to the extent that they are withdrawn, repeat complaints which have already been investigated, relate to care provided by an establishment or agency registered under the Care Standards Act 2000, relate to legal or disciplinary proceedings, relate to criminal proceedings or proceedings under section 59 of the Care Standards Act 2000, relate to matters over a year old when the complaint was made where such matters cannot be handled effectively or fairly because of the delay, or are unclear, frivolous or vexatious.

Regulation 6 provides for complaints which relate to care provided by an establishment or agency registered under the Care Standards Act 2000 to be referred to the registered person in respect of that establishment or agency where the complainant so wishes.

Regulation 7 requires local authorities to try to resolve complaints informally within 20 working days. Regulations 8 and 9 provide for the formal investigation of a complaint if the complainant does not want it to be investigated informally or if he does not like the outcome of the informal investigation.

Under regulation 10, a local authority which has investigated a complaint under regulation 9 must send a report of its investigation to the complainant and, where it finds the complaint to be well-founded, explain to the complainant what action, if any, it proposes to take.

After the complaint has been formally investigated or the period for such investigation has expired without a report on the outcome of the complaint being made, regulations 11 to 13 enable the complainant to require his case to be referred to a 3-person review panel (which will include at least two members independent of the local authority).

Under regulation 14, where the local authority is found by the review panel not to have dealt with the complaint adequately, the local authority must notify the complainant of what action, if any, it proposes to take and must provide guidance to the complainant as to the powers of a Local Commissioner to investigate a complaint under section 26(1) of the Local Government Act 1974.

Regulation 15 requires the local authority to send any complaint which is sent to it and which relates to an NHS body to the NHS body if the complainant so wishes. Where a complaint which relates to the local authority and the NHS body is so referred to an NHS body the local authority and the NHS body are required to cooperate with a view to providing the complainant with a comprehensive response to both elements of the complaint.

Regulation 16 requires each local authority to appoint a complaints manager to assist it in the coordination of its consideration of complaints under these Regulations. Regulation 17 requires each local authority to assist complainants to comply with the complaints procedure as necessary or to explain where such assistance can be found. Regulation 18 requires local authorities to monitor and report on the discharge of functions under these Regulations.

Regulations 19 to 21 make transitional provisions for complaints made before 1st September 2006. Such complaints are to be dealt with in accordance with the Complaints Procedure Directions 1990 (the Directions), unless, after 1st September 2006 the complainant makes written representations in accordance with the Directions, or the complainant wishes to have the local authority's consideration of the complaint assessed by a review panel, in which case the provisions of these Regulations apply.

Explanatory Memorandum to the Local Authority Social Services Complaints (England) Regulations 2006 (external link)

Next: Key features of the new NHS complaints regulations