Complaints procedure

King’s Lynn Foodbank is committed to delivering a high standard of service to anyone who engages with our work. Should you feel that our service has not met this standard, our complaints procedure is below.

We believe that the best way to improve our service is by learning from the people who use it. We welcome comments, compliments and complaints from clients, referral agencies, volunteers and anyone else with whom we come into contact in our work. These help us to see what we are doing well and where we can make improvements.

We aim to promote an environment where people are encouraged to raise and discuss issues informally and, where necessary, seek solutions to prevent them developing into problems or complaints.

However, we recognise that there may be situations where people are not happy with the outcome of an informal discussion or feel that the issue needs to be taken further. In these cases, King’s Lynn Foodbank has a complaints procedure so that we can work towards a resolution in a fair and transparent manner.

Our promise and commitment

We recognise that there may be times when our services and activities do not meet your expectations. If this happens, it is important that we know about it as soon as possible so that we can deal with the situation effectively to try to prevent it from happening again and to learn from our mistakes. We promise to take all feedback and complaints seriously and to deal with them in a timely manner.

How to make a complaint or give feedback

If you have a complaint, or would like to share a concern, compliment, or comment on any aspect of our service, you can contact us in one of the following ways:

In person to staff/volunteers at the foodbank
By phone: 07582 558 143
By email: info@kingslynn.foodbank.org.uk
Write to the following address: King’s Lynn Foodbank, TS Vancouver Building, St Margaret’s Lane, South Quay, King’s Lynn, PE30 5DS

Please tell us what your complaint or feedback is about and what you would like to see happen as a result. Please also tell us how we may contact you.

The complaint will be reinvestigated and you will be informed of the outcome within 10 working days*.

*Unless the complaint is particularly complex or time-consuming, in which case you will be kept informed of the progress of the investigation and notified of the expected date of completion.

Wherever possible King’s Lynn Foodbank will respect your confidentiality and keep your complaint confidential as far as possible. Any information about the complaint will usually only be shared with those who need to know in order to help resolve it. There may, however, be occasions when we cannot provide absolute confidentiality, for example in circumstances where a child or vulnerable adult may be at risk of harm.

What will happen after I complain?

We will acknowledge your complaint within five working days of receipt, and we will provide you with the name of the person responsible for investigating the matter on your behalf.

The person responsible for the investigation will write to you with their findings and proposed resolution within 28 days from receipt of the complaint*.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of the investigation you may appeal or escalate your concerns to the Trustees. Letters must be received within 21 working days of the date on the correspondence notifying you of the outcome of the first investigation. Appeal emails should be sent to Richard Pennington, Chair of Trustees: richard@kingslynn.foodbank.org.uk