1.2 Summarise regulatory requirements, codes of practice and guidance for managing comments, concerns and complaints

This guide will help you answer 1.2 Summarise regulatory requirements, codes of practice and guidance for managing comments, concerns and complaints.

Managing comments, concerns, and complaints is a legal and professional duty in adult care services. The law and sector codes set high standards to protect people using services, staff, and the public. Clear policies and guidance help managers respond consistently and fairly.

Listening and acting on feedback helps improve the quality of care. Handling complaints shows respect and openness. This guide covers the legal and professional framework, helping you stay compliant and provide safe, high-quality care.

Regulatory Requirements

The laws and rules covering complaints handling are based on rights, fairness, and safety. They lay out what managers must do and how they must act.

Legislation

Several key Acts affect how comments, concerns and complaints are managed:

• Health and Social Care Act 2008: Requires safe and effective complaints handling. This law created the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
• Care Act 2014: Puts a duty on local authorities and providers to involve people in their care and respond to their feedback.
• The Local Authority Social Services and NHS Complaints (England) Regulations 2009: Sets out rules for complaints procedure and timescales.
• Data Protection Act 2018 (GDPR): Ensures personal information is kept confidential during the complaints process.
• Equality Act 2010: Requires accessible complaints processes, making reasonable adjustments for disabled people.

Complying with these laws is not optional. Each sets out what is expected of a manager.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) Regulations

CQC’s Regulation 16: Receiving and Acting on Complaints is central to complaints handling in registered adult care services. It says:

• People must know how to complain
• Staff must respond without delay
• Complaints must be investigated fully
• Providers must learn from complaints to improve services

Failure to follow Regulation 16 can cause enforcement action or even closure.

Local Authority Contracts

Contracts with local authorities often include extra complaints handling duties. Managers need to meet all contract requirements. These may include:

• Timescales for acknowledging and resolving complaints
• Regular reporting to commissioners
• Involvement of advocacy services

Codes of Practice

Professional codes and national standards provide further guidance on how to manage comments and complaints. These codes shape behaviour and decision-making.

The Care Certificate Code of Conduct

The Code of Conduct for Adult Social Care Workers sets out values such as:

• Listening to people
• Acting on their concerns
• Being honest and open

Following the code means treating every concern seriously and responding with respect.

Skills for Care Guidance

Skills for Care provides guidance for managers to:

• Consider complaints as opportunities to improve
• Offer multiple easy ways for people to give feedback
• Keep the person at the centre of the process
• Record actions taken

This helps staff respond well and learn from people’s experiences.

Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Code

Managers who are registered nurses must comply with the NMC Code. It says to:

• Encourage feedback
• Deal with complaints quickly
• Use responses to improve care

Other regulators, including Social Work England and the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), have similar expectations for registered professionals.

Organisational Policies and Procedures

Every adult care service must have its own written policy for comments, concerns and complaints. These local procedures turn national requirements into daily practice.

Key Elements of a Complaints Policy

A clear policy includes:

• How to make comments or complaints
• Contact information for managers or complaints leads
• Steps involved in the process: from acknowledgement to resolution
• Timescales for each stage
• Support and advocacy details for people needing help
• Confidentiality and data protection arrangements
• How to appeal or escalate unresolved cases
• Recording, reporting and quality improvement systems

Policies must be kept up to date and easy to read. They should be available in accessible formats, for example large print or easy read.

Staff Roles and Training

Managers ensure:

• Frontline staff know the complaints process
• All staff know how to listen, record, and report concerns
• Team members understand their role and limits

Staff must get training on:

• Handling difficult conversations
• Confidentiality and privacy
• Dealing sensitively with distressed people

Managing Comments, Concerns, and Complaints in Practice

Handling feedback well builds trust and prevents issues from escalating into major problems. It boosts people’s confidence in services.

Encouraging Feedback

Managers should:

• Promote a “no blame” culture: people feel safe to speak up
• Display posters and leaflets explaining how to raise a concern or make a complaint
• Provide feedback forms; accept feedback electronically and face-to-face
• Welcome comments and suggestions, not just complaints

Recording and Acknowledgement

It is important to record feedback promptly and accurately. For formal complaints:

• Acknowledge complaints within three working days, or as contractually specified
• Explain the process and expected timescales
• Provide the name of a person handling the complaint

Clear records help track progress and fulfil regulatory requirements.

Investigation

Managers:

• Investigate fairly and objectively
• Gather evidence from all sides
• Protect the complainant’s privacy
• Involve the person making the complaint—even in shaping the investigation if suitable

Keep written records of findings and decisions.

Response and Resolution

People receive a clear response which includes:

• The outcome of the investigation
• Actions taken to resolve the issue or prevent recurrence
• Information on what to do if they are not satisfied

Responses need to be concise and free from jargon, showing empathy and respect.

Learning and Improvement

Managers:

• Reflect on complaints patterns and root causes
• Use learning to change procedures, systems, or training
• Share learning across the team to reduce repeated issues

Recording improvements is part of quality assurance.

Rights and Involvement of Individuals

People have the right to speak up if something is wrong. The law protects them from being treated unfairly for making a complaint.

Duty of Candour

All registered services must be open and honest when things go wrong, under the Duty of Candour law. This means:

• Being upfront when mistakes happen
• Apologising sincerely
• Explaining outcomes clearly

Openness is not optional. This builds trust and positive relationships.

Advocacy

Not everyone can speak up for themselves. Advocacy helps those who find it difficult to make a complaint or explain what they want.

Advocates:

• Help people put their concerns into words
• Support them through the process
• Make sure their rights are respected

Care providers often have links with local advocacy services.

Equality and Accessibility

Complaints policies must not discriminate. Managers should:

• Use translation or interpreting services for people with limited English
• Offer easy-read guides or other formats for those with learning disabilities
• Make adjustments for people with sensory, mobility or mental health needs

No one should be excluded from commenting or making a complaint.

Barriers and Solutions

Sometimes people hesitate to complain. Barriers can include:

• Worry about being treated unfairly
• Not understanding the process
• Language or communication difficulties
• Lack of confidence or fear of causing trouble

Managers reduce these barriers by:

• Offering support to make the process as easy as possible
• Providing information in multiple languages and formats
• Checking regularly that people know how to raise concerns

Listening is just as important as responding.

Collaboration with Partners and External Agencies

Care services rarely work alone. Different agencies can be involved in dealing with or monitoring complaints.

Local Authorities and Ombudsman

If a complaint is about a local authority service, it may go to that authority’s complaints team. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigates complaints that cannot be resolved locally.

Services must:

• Cooperate with outside investigations
• Share records (with consent and in line with data protection)
• Respond to recommendations for improvement

Police or Safeguarding

If a complaint reveals risk of harm or abuse, managers must involve police or safeguarding boards. Careful judgement, prompt action, and proper information sharing are vital.

Monitoring, Auditing, and Reporting

Continuous monitoring strengthens complaints management.

Managers:

• Regularly audit complaints records for trends and emerging issues
• Report findings to leaders, commissioners, and (where appropriate) external agencies
• Review the effectiveness of policies and update them when needed

CQC expects evidence that services learn and improve. This encourages transparent, safe care.

Supporting Staff

Staff involved in complaints may feel anxious or defensive. Managers support their team by:

• Giving clear information about the process
• Supporting reflection rather than blame
• Providing supervision and ongoing training
• Encouraging positive attitudes to learning from complaints

This creates a healthy workplace culture.

Final Thoughts

Effective complaints handling is a legal and moral requirement in adult care. Regulations, codes of practice, and guidance work together to set high standards—protecting both people using services and those providing care.

By following these requirements and good practices, you help create a safer, fairer and more responsive adult care service.