Creating a fairer Britain
If your complaint relates to an organisation (such as an employer or a service provider) and the organisation has a formal internal complaints system, you should use that as a first step.
If not, you could make a complaint to the decision-maker/ relevant person and/or that person’s superior. It’s a good idea to keep a written record of what has happened to you and when, as well as who you’ve spoken to, what action you’ve taken and any response you receive.
If you need help in thinking about or making a complaint, you could contact a local or specialist advocacy organisation. The Scottish Government website has details of independent advocacy agencies across Scotland.
You could also contact community group in your local area: the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action is the national voice of voluntary and community organisations in England, and may be able to advise you on finding a local community organisation that can help you.
Alternatively, you could speak to your trade union, if you are a member of one. The government website Directgov can give you more information about trade unions.
If you have used an internal complaints process and the problem has not been resolved to your satisfaction, you should check whether there is a process for making an internal appeal before you do anything else.
Sometimes pointing out the human rights implications of a situation may not change things. The person or organisation concerned may refuse to listen to you, or may disagree that there is a problem. Alternatively, you may decide that the situation is best approached more formally.
If your complaint relates to a public authority, it may be better to use the organisation's formal complaints procedure before taking legal action (but, again, remember the time limit for legal action may run out before the complaints process has finished). All public authority service providers must have a complaints procedure, setting out how people who use their services, or those acting on their behalf, can make a formal complaint.
If you have already gone through the public authority’s complaints procedure and the problem has not been resolved to your satisfaction, you can register your complaint (see Complaining to an external organisation).