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Do you want to share your thoughts and suggestions about the services that you receive from Brighter Places? Perhaps you have a compliment that you would like to pass on? You can do this using the form at the bottom of this page.

A service request requires an action to be taken to put something right.

If you are dissatisfied about a service you have received from us, or a lack of action taken by Brighter Places or by someone working on our behalf, then you can make a complaint.

Whether you have a service request or are making a complaint, our team will aim to find a solution. Sometimes this can be done straight away or we may need the help of another colleague or someone who has carried out work on our behalf.  This can take five working days.

If you make a complaint, we will:

• Acknowledge your complaint within five working days and show that we understand the nature of your complaint and what you would like as a resolution.
• Provide you with the details of the persons who will be investigating your complaint.
• Resolve your complaint quickly and fairly and write to you to explain what we have done or will do to put things right.  You can expect to receive this outcome letter within 10 working days of receiving your acknowledgment to your complaint.
• Clearly explain the reasons why we need to extend your complaint investigation (by up to a further 10 working days) if we are unable to resolve your complaint within the original timescale agreed.
• Try to incorporate any new issues that arise during the investigation within the same complaint unless they will cause an unreasonable delay. If this is the case, then these new issues will be raised as a new complaint.

If you are dissatisfied with the solutions offered as part of your complaint (stage 1) you have 15 days to tell us that you wish to escalate the complaint (stage 2).

If you decide to escalate your complaint to stage 2 of the process, we will:

• Acknowledge this request within five working days.
• Provide you with the details of the Director who will be investigating your complaint.
• Aim to send you a final outcome letter within 20 working days of the acknowledgement.
• Clearly explain the reasons why we need to extend your complaint investigation (by up to a further 20 working days) if we are unable to resolve your complaint within the original timescale agreed.

If you are unhappy with Brighter Places or the way in which your complaint has been handled you can contact the Housing Ombudsman Service for advice.

The Housing Ombudsman Service introduced the Complaint Handling Code to help set clear guidelines for landlords to follow. This ensures that complaints are responded to quickly and fairly with a focus on learning from these complaints to drive service improvements. It also helps create a positive complaint handling culture amongst colleagues and residents. In April 2024, The Complaint Handling Code became statutory, meaning that landlords are obliged by law to follow its requirements.

• Our customer feedback and complaints leaflet 
• Complaints and Compensation Policy
• The Housing Ombudsman Service – Complaint Handling Code
• Brighter Places latest self-assessment.  We are required to carry out a self-assessment against the Complaint Handling Code and present our findings to the Board every year. Brighter Places does this annually or whenever we introduce major service changes that may affect customer’s satisfaction.
• Annual Complaints Report  The Board has approved the annual complaints report and self-assessment against the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code and confirms compliance with its requirements. They are satisfied that robust and accessible complaint handling arrangements are in place, supported by clear governance oversight and a strong commitment to learning and continuous improvement. The annual report and self-assessment was also reviewed by the Customer Experience Committee (CEC) and included input from the Member Responsible for Complaints (MRC). Their comments are in the Annual-Complaints-Report-2026.pdf