We welcome your feedback anytime.
In the first instance if you have feedback about our housing or care services you should contact your Local Housing Manager or Housing and Care Manager.
You can write, telephone, email or speak in person to the local manager; there is no requirement to fill in a form. Contact details are available on our individual scheme pages.
At Housing 21 we want to ensure you’re happy living with us and with the services you receive which is why we encourage you to provide feedback and get involved in decisions that affect you and where you live.
We’re always keen to hear about things that are going well, but just as important is understanding where things are less than satisfactory and areas where we can improve which is why we genuinely welcome any suggestions or comments you may have.
You can feedback on your experiences – both good and bad – by writing, telephoning, emailing or speaking to your local manager in the first instance. Alternatively, you can be part of our Residents' Complaint Panel.
At Housing 21 we view complaints as an opportunity to learn and to improve our services. We hope you never need to make a complaint, but if you do, we will investigate it in line with the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code.
There are different ways you can make a complaint to us:
- In person or over the phone to your local manger
- Calling our complaints line: 0303 123 1622 (operating hours are 9am to 5pm on weekdays)
- In writing:
Freepost RTJE-LEHY-SGLJ
Housing 21 Complaints
Tricorn House
51-53 Hagley Road
Birmingham
B16 8TP
You can find advice from the Housing Ombudsman on how to make a complaint on their website.
We love getting compliments to help us understand when things are going well.
In the first instance if you have feedback about our housing or care services you should contact your Local Housing Manager or Housing and Care Manager.
You can write, telephone, email or speak in person to the local manager; there is no requirement to fill in a form. Contact details are available on our individual scheme pages.
Requesting a repair
When requesting repairs Housing 21 is responsible for those required in either your home or communal areas. You will need to speak to you local manager.
If the problem arises when they are unavailable you can find contact details for an alternative manager on your noticeboard. Alternatively you can use your Appello tablet to do this.
You will need to provide the following information:
- Your name, address and daytime telephone number
- Type of repair required
- Details of the issue, including the make and model of any appliance and size of any leak
- Location of the repair eg. bathroom
- When you will be at home so we can arrange an appointment
Complaints timeline
Find out more about the two-stage complaints process and the timescales involved
Resolving complaints
If we are found to be at fault for a complaint, find out the different ways we can put things right
Complaints Policy
Our Complaints Policy adheres to the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code
Complaints reports
Find out more information on our performance on complaints.
The Housing Ombudsman defined a complaint as: "An expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents."
Complaints survey frequently asked questions
We’re committed to providing you with a high-quality service. To help us check that we’re meeting the standards you expect, we run a monthly complaints survey.
This is open to all residents who have made a complaint, and their complain has been closed within that month and isn't being escalated further.
See our F.A.Qs for more information about our Complaints Survey.
This survey is designed to gather feedback on residents’ satisfaction with our complaints handling process. The information collected is essential in helping us ensure that our service meets the standards residents expect from Housing 21.
The survey is fully anonymous to all Housing 21 teams, with the exception of the Research and Influence Team, who administer the survey, and the Complaints Team, who may follow up on urgent concerns raised in responses.
If a resident raises an urgent concern and gives consent to be contacted, the Complaints Team will be notified so that they can take prompt action to resolve the issue.
Any published results will be fully anonymised, and individual residents will not be identifiable from their responses.
The complaints survey is carried out internally by the Research and Influence Team.
Each month, we contact all residents, or their advocates, who have made a formal complaint. Residents are contacted a few months after their complaint was submitted. This allows sufficient time for the complaints process to be completed in full, including any escalations or resolutions.
The survey is conducted in accordance with UK GDPR and our Privacy Policies.
Residents’ complaint records are handled sensitively and securely. The Research and Influence Team only access information that is relevant and necessary for the purpose of conducting the survey.
We've historically carried out the Complaints Survey in-house because we recognise the sensitive and confidential nature of complaints. Managing the survey internally helps reassure residents that the details of their complaint are not shared with a third party. It also ensures that any urgent issues identified through the survey can be flagged and addressed promptly by our teams.
We're currently reviewing the Complaints Survey process and considering how it may operate in the future, for example, whether it could be conducted by our research partner, Acuity, in line with our Repairs Survey. However, at present, the survey continues to be managed internally.
Each month, all residents who have made a formal complaint, and whose case is not currently escalating to Stage 2 or to the Ombudsman, are invited to take part in a short, five-minute survey. The survey asks for their overall views, as well as feedback on different aspects of the complaints process.
We kindly ask local managers to inform residents that they may be contacted in the months following a formal complaint. Their feedback plays an important role in helping us understand perceptions of the service, so that we can continue to handle complaints in a professional and sensitive manner, while ensuring compliance with the Complaint Handling Code.
Eligible resident (or their advocates) will be contacted either by email or by telephone by a member of the Research and Influence Team.
While many residents use smartphones and other digital devices daily, we recognise that not everyone feels confident using online links or has access to the internet. For this reason, we also offer the option to complete the survey by telephone. This allows residents to talk through the questions with a member of the team, without needing a Wi-Fi connection or digital access.
Residents who have made a formal complaint are informed in their final response letter that they may be contacted to provide feedback about their experience. Participation in the survey is entirely optional.
To help reassure residents that the invitation is genuine, we include their Complaint ID and brief details of their recent complaint. This confirms the validity of the invitation and reminds residents which complaint their feedback relates to.
Email invitations are sent from an official Housing 21 email address ending in @housing21.org.uk.
Telephone calls are made from a number registered to Housing 21 via Microsoft Teams telephony. The number ends in 1153.
Do you have a question about our monthly Complaints Survey? Please contact our Research Team.
Interested in joining our complaints panel?
If you are unhappy with any aspect of your home or the services provided and want to make a complaint, you can find out more about the process, including contact details, timescales and what to expect below.
If you are a resident at one of our Extra Care schemes then you can leave feedback on the quality of the care you receive, whether it's good or could be improved, by sending it to the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
