Customer charter

We aim to ensure that you, our customers receive a high quality and efficient service from Telford & Wrekin Council. This Charter describes the standards we are working towards.

We want to provide you with an excellent service; however, we need your help. If we have done something that has exceeded your expectations or a member of staff has gone the extra mile to assist you please let us know. It is also important that you are able to tell us when something has gone wrong or you have a suggestion about our services that you would like us to consider.

Our commitments to you

Efficient Service

• We will ensure that we answer 90% of all telephone calls within five rings.
• We will ensure that when necessary we put calls through to the right place first time.
• We will return phone messages within 1 working day.
• We will acknowledge emails within 24 hours. We will ensure when you visit council buildings you will be seen by a receptionist within 10 minutes of arriving.
• We will ensure that the first person you deal with either answers your enquiry or passes you on to the right person.
  We will record complaints, comments, and compliments and use them to review and improve our services.
• We will respond to complaints within five working days or, where this is not possible, within 20 working days.
• We will respond to Freedom of Information requests within 20 working days
• We will respond to Data Protection request within 40 calendar days.

Personal Service

• We aim to deal with any problems you have at your first contact.
• When calling us by telephone, we will greet you politely and clearly - employees will give you their name and the name of the service or place you are calling.
• We will keep the use of answer phones during office hours to a minimum.
• On all correspondence from us, we will use plain language and avoid using jargon.
• When seeing you in person we will be on time for pre-arranged appointments and let you know beforehand if we need to cancel a pre-arranged appointment.
• We will ensure that you are treated politely and courteously by council officers.
• We will ensure that staff wear official identification at all times so that you know who you are dealing with, both in council buildings and when visiting you at home.

Professional Service

• We will offer a service that is polite and effective.
• We will ensure that the staff who serve you are trained to give you the help and advice you need.
• We will give you details of who is dealing with your enquiry so that you know who to get back to and how.
• We will provide clear signs in reception areas so that you know where to go.
• We will ensure our reception areas are clean, tidy, and safe.
• We will apologise when we are at fault and do our best to put things right.
• We will monitor any recommendations made following the investigation of your complaint to ensure that, where possible, making your complaint has helped to improve council services.

Fair Service

• We are committed to improving the service we provide to all our customers.
• We will treat you politely and not discriminate against you because of your race, religion, age, sex, sexuality, or disability.
• We will arrange for an interpreter or language signer if you need one.
• We will arrange a time and place for you to discuss issues in private if you like.
• We will make other arrangements to see you if you cannot visit our office because of a long-term illness or disability.
• We will treat complaints confidentially, while making sure we are fair to everyone concerned.
• We will tell you how to get information provided in other languages or formats, such as in large print or audio tape.
• All main reception areas will have:
• Ramped access, Automatic Opening Doors, Lower level desk points.

Information Service

• We will produce information about the Council and our services that is accurate, useful, and up to date and in a format that meets customer need.
• An A-Z of Council Services will be available at all reception areas and on the Council Website.
• We will inform you how you can take your complaint further if you are not satisfied with our response, including how you can have your complaint independently reviewed by the Local Government Ombudsman.
• We will inform you, at least once a year, through the local press and our website at www.telford.gov.uk about how well we are meeting the aims set out in the customer charter.
• We will review the customer charter every year.

How you can help us to help you

• Treat our employees politely.
• Give us all the appropriate information so that we can deal with your enquiry quickly and effectively.
• Let us know beforehand if you need to cancel or rearrange a pre-arranged appointment.
• Let us know if you need an interpreter or language signer.
• Tell us immediately if you are unhappy with the service you have received.
• Tell us if you are pleased with the service, you have received so that we can encourage good practice across the council.

Give your views by joining our Community Panel or contributing to 'Talking point' on our website at www.telford.gov.uk. If you would like more information, please contact Louise Stanway on 01952 380135 or by e-mail at louise.stanway@telford.gov.uk

Do you need to contact us?

• By phone (main switchboard): 01952 380000
• By Mincom 01952 382500
• Monday to Friday, 8.30am-5.15pm
• By e-mail: contact@telford.gov.uk
• By post: Civic Offices, PO Box 213, Telford, TF3 4LD

For more details, look in your local phone book or on our website at www.telford.gov.uk

To report a complaint, comment, or compliment, please phone 01952 382006, e-mail us at complaints@telford.gov.uk or pick up a 'complaints, comments and compliments' form at any of our council locations.

Download the Customer Charter
You can download the full Customer Charter to print out or keep on your computer. Simply select your preferred format from the options in the right hand menu.