If you encounter issues relating to children's social care, you should try to get these resolved as soon as possible after a problem occurs. Most problems can be resolved by speaking to the person dealing with your case, such as a social worker, key worker or their manager.
If you require more information about help for children with special educational needs, visit Enfield’s Local Offer for SEND. If you have concerns about your child at school, visit concerns about your child at school.
Our statutory complaints procedure only covers issues relating to Children’s Social Care Services and is for children and young people who use our services or anyone who has a close interest in the child or young person’s wellbeing. Our complaints process involves the following three stages:
Stage one (problem solving)
A manager from the service you are unhappy with will be responsible for resolving your complaint in the first instance. They will aim to respond to you within ten working days but in some cases it might take up to 20 working days.
Stage two (formal investigation)
We always try to resolve matters quickly at stage one but sometimes we may need to move into a more formal process at stage two. If you’re unhappy with the stage one response, you can ask us to consider your complaint at stage two of the process. An investigation will then be carried out by someone not involved in the service you are complaining about. We aim to respond within 25 working days of your agreed complaint statement. This can be extended to 65 working days if we need more time to investigate further.
Stage three (review panel)
We understand on rare occasions, people disagree with the stage two investigation and want to move into a panel process. If you’re unhappy with the stage two response, you can ask us to refer your complaint to a stage three review panel. The panel will review the investigation carried out under stage two and decide if the investigation and results were fair. If you’re not satisfied with our response at this stage, you can make a complaint to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
For more information, view our comments, compliments and complaints for children and young people (PDF, 746.49 KB).