This policy and the accompanying description has been adapted from that provided by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission.

Complaints to charities and not-for-profits

Charities and other not-for-profits should provide a safe and effective service to those who wish to make a complaint to or about a charity, whether regarding mismanagement of people’s information and data, use of donations, costs of fundraising or fundraising methods, the provision of services or the quality of the service. Many complaints happen because of alleged services failures, relevant information is not readily available, is difficult to understand, incomplete or misleading, does not appropriately address common concerns or frequently asked questions, is not provided or made available within a reasonable period of time.

Complaints and compliments are best viewed as a positive interaction with the people and communities which charities serve.

Benefits of handling complaints well

Good complaint handling can provide you with knowledge which can be used to:

• Improve products and services
• Build better relationships with your donors and those you serve
• Improve your bottom line
• Empower your staff to resolve issues fairly and efficiently

Bad complaint handling can cost your organisation in the following ways:

• Donor and customer loyalty
• The lifetime value of a donor
• The public reputation of your organisation
• Direct financial expenses in relation to the complaint

Consider the following:

• Is it easy to make a complaint to your organisation?
• Is the information about who to contact easy to find?
• Do you have feedback or complaint forms in print and electronic formats?
• Consider whether it is possible to resolve a complaint informally by talking to the individual and providing an explanation or apology.
• Are there regular reviews of the issues raised by complaints to or about your organisation?

How to use these model documents

These documents – Model Policy and Model Procedure – are intended to provide guidance to organisations on the key principles and concepts of an effective and efficient complaint management system.

The Model Policy is designed to be used as a guide for the development or update of your organisation’s complaint handling policy.

The Model Procedure accompanies the complaint handling policy. Such a document provides guidance to staff on how complaints will be managed by the organisation in accordance with its documented policy.

The documents can be used as a template for adaption and then adoption by your organisation. You need to consider your organisation’s particular circumstances such as ensuring the documents fit with your organisation’s constitution (or other governing document), any accreditation standards or contract obligations as well as calibrating these documents for you size, nature, style, character and program delivery structure. You may wish to consider details such as time frames when modifying the policy and procedure to suit your particular needs.

Your CEO (or President) and your governing body (your Board or Management Committee, for example) should formally consider and adopt your organisation’s complaint handling policy and ensure that staff (paid and volunteer) and contractors adhere to it through regular reporting and reviews.

Proportional to size and risk

Your complaint policy should reflect your organisation’s size, nature, style, character and program delivery structure. The size of the policy may therefore vary between organisations, dependent on these factors and the level and type of risk factors faced by each organisation. The complaint policy should refer to, and link with, your other organisational charters, policies, codes and procedure manuals in order to ensure that the complaint policy is relevant and integrated into your organisational culture.