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Brighton & Hove Seaside Community Homes

Unit F, Hove Technology Centre
St Joseph’s Close
Hove, East Sussex
United Kingdom
BN3 7ES

Our office hours are Monday to Friday, 9am till 5pm.

If you want to speak to someone face-to-face, please make an appointment with us in advance as we cannot accept drop-ins because our team does “hybrid” working, so we may sometimes be working from home, with no one available in the office.

Privacy Policy

Repairs:

01273 294409 /  Repairs.Helpdesk@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Anti-Social Behaviour team:

01273 294400 option 4, option 2

Rent / Service Charge team:

012736 274400 option 3 / CreditControlTeam@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Housing Online:

You can also use Housing Online to:

  • report a repair (and add photos of your repairs)
  • view any repairs you’ve logged in the last 12 months
  • view your rent account and download rent statements
  • make payments
  • check your contact details and update your phone number and email address
  • view your tenancy

Contact Seaside Homes through this online form:

Name

Housing Officers

You have a Housing Officer on the Temporary Accommodation Team who you can contact for support and queries about your tenancy. Housing Officers are allocated based on your address, depending on the first letter of your road name. You can contact your Housing Officer by ringing the Temporary Accommodation Team on 01273 294400 (option 4, option 1) or emailing Temporary.Accommodation@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Complaints

We welcome any feedback from our tenants whether it is good or bad, compliment or complaint.

By listening to you, the tenant, we can ensure that we are doing everything we can to make sure we are delivering the best service to make your home and community as safe, welcoming and comfortable as possible.

How to make a complaint?

Our Managing Agents, Brighton and Hove City Council, manage our complaints process. Your Housing Officer will help you through the process and explain your rights to you if you are unsure of how to make a complaint or what to do next. You can also read our Managing Agent’s full Complaints Policy.

How to make a complaint:

  • use the online complaint form found on the council’s website
  • write to Customer Feedback Team, 1st Floor, Hove Town Hall, Norton Rd Hove, BN3 3BQ
  • phone 01273 291 229, the telephone service is available Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 1:30pm, except public holidays
  • send an email to customerfeedback@brighton-hove.gov.uk
Equalities and access to the complaints procedure

The council does not insist on complaints about straightforward matters being put in writing and staff will be prepared to take down details of a complaint at a contact centre or over the phone. Complainants will be asked, however, to put complaints about more serious and detailed matters in writing.

If someone has difficulty writing and it is a serious or detailed matter the Customer Feedback Team will provide details of appropriate advocacy services and in exceptional situations arrange to meet with the complainant.

Stage 1 – problem solving

The aim of the first stage of the complaints procedure is to resolve problems as quickly as possible and, where the council has made a mistake, to put the complainant in the position they would have been in had the mistake not been made.

All complaints should be acknowledged in writing within two working days of being received. The acknowledgement letter should state:

    • the name of the officer or the section dealing with the complaint and how they can be contacted.
    • when the complainant can expect a reply. This should be within ten working days of the complaint being received.

Although the procedure allows ten working days to reply, every effort will be made to respond to the problem as soon as possible.

In some cases it may be appropriate and more efficient to phone or meet with the complainant to let them know what action has been taken in response to their complaint. This type of response will generally be appropriate for more straightforward matters which can be resolved quickly.

More complicated complaints should always receive a written reply. Responses sent in reply to complaints should:

  • be clear, concise and avoid jargon and technical language as much as possible.
  • answer all the points of concern raised by the complainant.
  • explain the reasons for the failure in service, (if one has occurred).
  • provide an apology where appropriate, and explain what action has been, or is being taken, to put things right and prevent the same thing happening in the future.
  • offer a remedy where appropriate
  • explain what further action the complainant can take if they are not satisfied with the department’s response

What if I’m still not satisfied?

If you are still unhappy after the complaint has been dealt with at Stage 1 you can ask for a further investigation to be carried out by a Customer Feedback Officer.

Stage 2 – further investigation

Requests for Stage 2 investigations should be submitted in writing by the complainant or their advocate, explaining why they are unhappy with the previous responses they have received and what outcome they are seeking.

The Customer Feedback Team will acknowledge the request within two working days of receipt. A Customer Feedback Manager will assess the request contact the complainant to let them know how their complaint will be dealt with.

Investigations will focus on the administrative process and whether the council has acted in accordance with the appropriate policies, processes and legislation. The Customer Feedback Manager cannot consider the merits of a decision or the professional judgement of officers. However, Customer Feedback Managers will consider if the service team has acted fairly, proportionately and reasonably.

On completion of the investigation the Customer Feedback Manager will reply to the complainant detailing the findings of the investigation.

Customer Feedback Managers aim to conclude all stage 2 investigations within twenty working days. Where this is not possible, in the case of particularly complex investigations for example, the Customer Feedback Team will ensure that the complainant is kept informed of progress.

The Customer Feedback Manager will discuss any learning and service improvement recommendations with senior managers and how those recommendations might be implemented.

At the end of Stage 2 the complainant will be advised of their right to contact the appropriate Ombudsman.

Ombudsman

You can contact the Ombudsman at any stage for impartial advice. If you’re dissatisfied with the response to your complaint at stage 2, you can raise your complaint with the Local Government Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman is impartial and is independent of the government and local authorities.

You can find out more information by contacting the Local Government Ombudsman in the following ways:

You can read our Managing Agent’s Self-Assessment against the Complaint Handling Code. Seaside Homes welcomes any feedback on our compliance with the Complaint Handling Code, you can contact us on our phone number or email address as listed at the top of this page.

Purpose of complaints

An effective complaints procedure ensures that the council has an opportunity to put things right for an individual who has received a poor service. The council can also learn from its mistakes and improve services.

The council’s aim is to develop a culture in which:

  • complaints are encouraged and welcomed.
  • staff at all levels are aware of and committed to the council’s complaints procedures.
  • there is a strong and focused emphasis on learning from complaints so that mistakes are not repeated.
  • complaints are about improving services and developing staff rather than attributing blame.
  • both failures and successes are recorded and the data is shared and used to drive service improvement.
  • complaints are dealt with in a way that is fair to both the complainant and the staff involved.