Your dignity is a matter of prime importance to us, and all staff receive training in this area.

You will be asked for the name by which you wish to be addressed, and this name will be recorded on your Service User Plan and used by all staff. You are perfectly entitled to ask that your principal carers use one name, and others use another name. The level of familiarity is under your control. In the absence of information to the contrary, staff will address you formally, using your title and surname.

Staff are trained to be sensitive to your feelings when in company.

The Agency seeks to reduce any feelings of vulnerability which Service Users may have as a result of disability or illness.

All Service Users have the right to be alone or undisturbed and to be free from public attention or intrusion into their private affairs. The staff of The Agency are guests in the home of the Service User.

Staff will enter a Service User’s property and rooms within the property only with express consent.

Staff of The Agency respect the rights of Service Users to make telephone calls without being overheard or seen by a worker.

Records will be designed, used and stored so as to assure privacy. Legislative controls over records, such as the Data Protection Act, will be adhered to, and the Service User’s explicit permission in writing will be sought before information is passed to any person other than those directly concerned with the Care of the Service User.

Records will be made available to the Service User’s principal Care Worker and family according to the wishes of the Service User.

We believe that complaints and compliments are a valuable indicator of the quality of our service, and an opportunity to improve that quality. We assure all Service Users that no-one will be victimised for making a complaint, we encourage Service Users to instigate the complaints procedure whenever they feel that this is necessary. We do not wish to confine complaints to major issues. We encourage Service Users to comment when relatively minor matters are a problem to them, such as receiving cold food, or being kept waiting without explanation, or being spoken to in a manner that they do not like. It is our policy that all matters which disturb or upset a Service User should be reported, recorded, and corrective action should be taken. Only in that way can we work towards meeting our aim of continuously improving our service.

Our commitment is that:

• All complaints will be taken seriously;
• All complaints will be acted upon with fairness and impartiality;
• You will receive a response within 24 hours of the complaint being made, and a final reply within 28 days;
• If the complaint is upheld, you will receive a written apology and appropriate action will be taken to rectify the complaint, and you will be informed of what that action is;
• Service Users are entitled to involve an impartial third party in the complaint procedure if they so wish.

Service Users and their representatives may take their complaints to persons in authority outside The Agency. For Service Users funded all or in part by Social Services or the Clinical Commissioning Group, complaints may in the first instance be directed to them. For privately funded clients, a range of advocacy services are available locally and they will be happy to help you deal with the complaint. In the event of a serious issue and complaint, you should contact the CQC.