We want to make sure that we are making it easy and straight forward for you to make a complaint about Children’s Social Care. If you are unhappy with the service the Council has provided, please get in touch with us.

Please contact your Social Worker or Manager in the first instance about your concerns. If  and speak to us about what has happened. If you need to raise a complaint be do so using our online form.

You can also contact us by writing to us at the following address:

There are three stages of the complaints procedure:

Stage One

• You can submit a Stage One complaint by using the online form, or
• Write to us with your complaint using the address above  

The Complaints team will investigate the complaint, which takes up to 10 days. You will receive an acknowledgement with a reference number once your complaint is logged.  The service will notify you in writing, if there is a delay in sending you the response.  

Stage Two

• If you are not happy with the response you have received from your Stage One complaint, you can log a Stage Two complaint by following the link provided in the Stage One response letter. Otherwise, you can write to Information.Officer@walthamforest.gov.uk and ask them to escalate your complaint. Please include your complaint reference number, and we would encourage you to tell us why you are dissatisfied with the Stage One response.
• The Complaints team will then log your Stage Two complaint, which will have the same reference number as your Stage One complaint.
• The Complaints team will then appoint an Independent Investigator to carry out the investigation. We will also appoint an Independent Person, to ensure that the process during the investigation is open, transparent, and fair.
• The investigation can take up to 25 days, but it can be longer depending on the nature of the complaint.
• These appointed persons do not work for the Council and will look at the complaint and carry out the investigation in an impartial, comprehensive, and effective manner.

Stage Three

• If you feel that the issue has not been resolved at Stage Two, or you are unhappy with the outcome, you can ask for the case to be looked at by a Review Panel.
• The Panel is made up of an Independent Chairperson and two Independent Panel members. Your complaint should be heard by them within a further 30 working days. The Panel will take a ‘fresh look’ at your complaint to consider what stands in the way of it being resolved, but they do not re-investigate the complaint. They will make recommendations to the Strategic Director, Children's Directorate. You will be notified of the decision within 20 working days of the meeting.

• Childrens Social Care Local Government Ombudsman
• Safeguarding Concerns
• Complaints about Schools The Council does not deal with complaints about Schools. You will need to contact the school directly to make a complaint
• If you are a young person who needs support to submit a complaint about Social Care you can contact The Voice and Influence service who can help you.