Complaints procedure

We will take all complaints we receive very seriously.

This information page was withdrawn on

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is now the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities please see our latest complaints procedure

What we can help with

If you are unhappy the service you get from MHCLG, we will look at:

  • if you are unhappy with the way we responded to an enquiry or the time that we took to respond (or if we didn’t respond)
  • if you think we have not followed a formal process or the law when dealing with a complaint
  • any incorrect action or failure to take action or investigate
  • if we made inaccurate or misleading statements
  • inadequate consultation or liaison
  • any rudeness or offensive remarks

We don’t cover:

We also don’t cover actions by:

  • local authorities
  • other sponsored bodies, such as our executive agencies
  • the Local Government Ombudsman
  • other government departments

Send your complaint to us

When making your complaint, please include as much detail as possible, for example:

  • the nature of the complaint
  • the names the names of any MHCLG staff concerned
  • what (if anything) you have done so far
  • what you would like us to do to sort things out

We have a 3 stage process:

Stage 1 – complain directly to the officer concerned

Complain directly and informally to the person you have been in contact with. If you have not already been in contact with someone or don’t know who to contact, email mhclgcorrespondence@communities.gov.uk or ask the Knowledge and Information Access Team (details below). We aim to respond to your complaint within 15 working days.

Stage 2 – complain to the officer’s line manager

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of Stage 1, you can contact the line manager of your original contact. If you don’t know who that is, contact:

Complaints Officer
Knowledge and Information Access Team
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
1st floor NW, Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

Tel: 0303 444 0000 (9am-5pm Mon-Fri)

Email: mhclgcorrespondence@communities.gov.uk

The line manager will look at the facts, arrive at their own decision, and write to you with their findings.

We try to reply within 15 working days, but if this isn’t possible we will let you know there will be a delay.

Stage 3 - complain to the complaints officer

If you are still not satisfied, you can ask the departmental complaints officer to investigate.

The complaints officer is independent from other parts of the department and will consider the matter with fresh eyes. She/he aims to respond within 20 working days, but if this is not possible, we will let you know.

The stage 3 response is normally the department’s final response.

Review by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

If you are still unhappy, you can ask your MP to take your complaint to the independent Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) to review the handling of your complaint.

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Millbank Tower,
Millbank
London, SW1P 4QP

Tel: 0345 015 4033

Email: phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk

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