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DWP Director General of Operations

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Andrew Dutton
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Welfare rights service - Derbyshire County Council

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Has anyone any experience of directing complaints to this office?

I sent six complaints on 30/6/14, all relating to the local BC’s failure to reply to correspondence for months on end, despite reminders.

I have received no replies, not a single one.


Erm…..

Paul_Treloar_CPAG
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Advice and Rights Team, Child Poverty Action Group

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Last time I tried to escalate a complaint through this route, my initial complaint was “not received”, my follow-up wasn’t acted on as they told me that there hadn’t been a complaint received previously, and when I followed this up, they pushed it back to the level 1 complaints team for a response, at which stage my client decided to knock it on the head because she was finding the process of the complaint as stressful as she had the original shoddy decision-making.

Peter Turville
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We find it most effective to ask the clients MP to raise the complaint with DWP. A response will be provided from a ‘high level’ - not always the Director Genral - the most recent response came from the Benefits Director (inc. a direct tel. no. for a named person in the BC - when contacted very helpful and issue resolved with hrs!).

neilbateman
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I’ve had similar bad experiences taking complaints via the Director General’s office and the replies very often are redrafts by the original people who responded inadequately to the initial complaint.

All pretty poor stuff, but what else can we expect from a failing, dysfunctional organisation whose senior managers have long been in denial about its failings?

[ Edited: 5 Sep 2014 at 04:10 pm by neilbateman ]
Peter Turville
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neilbateman - 05 September 2014 03:14 PM

All pretty poor stuff, but what else can we expect from a failing, dysfunctional organisation where senior managers have long been in denial about it’s failings?

Neil - so gently understated!

Andrew Dutton
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It does all contribute to a picture of mounting organisational chaos and persistent denial.

I want to know why DWP does not respond to letters - I want to know where the letters go (increasingly confusing mail handling arrangements) - I want to know what has happened to their ‘standard’ of replying within 10 working days.

I’m also unimpressed that the info on gov.uk about the DGO consists of a little picture and biog, but as close as possible to nothing about what his office does or how they manage complaints, when they will reply - or even how to contact them.

Notebooks out, DWP spybots! Are you going to improve things???

Ben E Fitz
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Don’t hold your breath! It suits them fine to keep things the way they are at present.

Seems to me that everyone in DWP, from IDS down to telephone staff, have an overriding terror of taking responsibility for anything, and will do anything to avoid it, be it misleading parliament, “misplacing” or not receiving correspondence, ignoring complaints in the hope that claimants will get fed up and drop the issue or the old favourite of blaming the claimant for any problem.

Andrew Dutton
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Hey, guess what!!!! No reply!!!!!

Bryan R
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Folkestone Welfare Union

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See:  https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions/about/complaints-procedure

oh and get your mp involved as well as there are 2 tiers Level 1 and 2. If you include the MP then it goes to 2 automatically and you sure do get a response.

Andrew Dutton
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That web page just sends one round in circles, it’s part of my complaint. All useful info has been removed, including contact details for the DGO. I am told that DWP is ‘reviewing’ the online informatiion it gives.

Daphne
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latest stats on number of complaints -

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-dwp-financial-year-2014-to-2015

of course they are only the complaints that get recorded - the problem is getting them to that stage!

Liz S
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Welfare specialist and appeals officer - Herefordshire Council Welfare Rights Team

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I have been informed by DWP processing that they are ‘far too busy’ to bother replying to my letters/faxes/phone calls/emails as they actually have other work to do that is far more pressing…........

Furthermore (the very helpful - not) processing officer went on to say, if they picked up the phone to call someone every time they were asked to do so, they would never get anything else done.

Well. That told me!

In fairness though, I find the complaints team at Coventry very helpful in achieving resolution of particularly challenging cases.

acg
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You need to be persistent and bear in mind that both Stage 1 and Stage 2 Complaints should be responded to within 15 working days.

If no response to Stage 2 Complaint to Director General for Operations complain to the Independent Case Examiner (the ICE authorisation form has to be completed by customer)

-ICE cannot take up Stage 3 complaint until DWP have finalised Stage 2 but they will write to both you and DWP which will escalate the Stage 2 complaint.

-If no response within 5 weeks of date of ICE letter contact ICE again and they will take up complaint directly with DWP.DWP don’t like this but it is effective.Remember to ask for compensation.They will often give £50 to £100 just to get rid.

-Customer has 6 months from date of Stage 2 final response to make Stage 3 complaint to
ICE.

You can also contact the Director General for Operations direct.His name is Noel Shanahan but he does not advertise his contact details.You can email him at: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or phone 0207 449 7520.

Andrew Dutton
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Interesting - I emailed Mr Shanahan on 12th November. the email has not bounced back so I assume it was OK, but there is no acknowledgement, no reply. None of my letters have ever received a reply.

I’m thinking the next stage is to go to his office and sit outside, howling.

Paul_Treloar_CPAG
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Andrew Dutton - 24 November 2014 10:26 AM

Interesting - I emailed Mr Shanahan on 12th November. the email has not bounced back so I assume it was OK, but there is no acknowledgement, no reply. None of my letters have ever received a reply.

I’m thinking the next stage is to go to his office and sit outside, howling.

If you try to follow up now, the response will be that you haven’t waited 10 working days….

When I tried to escalate a complaint with him, they denied ever receiving my complaint and when I resent, they dealt with it as stage 1 complaint again, at which point my client gave up.

Andrew Dutton
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Still no reply, no acknowledgement. Tuning up for the howling….