Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some frequently asked questions in relation to making a complaint. We hope these are helpful and answer some of the questions you may have around this.
You can contact us at legalteam@niccy.org if you have any further questions.
Children and young people can bring complaints to us. We can deal with complaints from young people under 18 years of age or up to 21 years of age if they have been in care or have a disability. Parents and carers can also bring complaints to us as well as professionals involved in a child’s life such as teachers, social workers, or a health care provider.
The term relevant authority refers to organisations which carry out a public service on behalf of the government. This includes schools, health care providers, and many others. If you are unsure if your complaint involves a relevant authority, please contact us and we will advise you. We cannot deal with matters such as contact and residence issues as these do not normally involve a relevant authority but are disputes between parents.
You need to have taken steps to resolve the complaint yourself. For example you should have made a complaint to the authority yourself and exhausted their complaints procedure before referring your complaint to NICCY.
Even if you have already made a complaint in person or via the telephone it is a good idea to also put your complaint in writing. You should keep a copy for yourself so that you have a record of what you included in your complaint. You should also keep copies of any replies that you receive and any relevant documentation regarding your complaint.
I have followed the complaints procedure for the authority concerned – what do I do now?If you have followed the complaints procedure and you remain dissatisfied, you should refer your complaint to NICCY. The Referral Form can be found here on our website.
Please complete the Referral Form which can be found here on our website. This should be completed online and submitted. It can also be posted out to you if you prefer or sent to you via email for completion and return.
NICCY will take your complaint seriously. Our team of skilled investigators will assess the content of your complaint form and decide what steps need to be taken to attempt to resolve the matter. You will be contacted and kept informed of progress. It is important to note that NICCY will not take sides when investigating a complaint and will carry out our investigation on an impartial basis.
Child protection matters should be referred to the appropriate authority, either social services or the PSNI. However, if any complaint to NICCY involves a child protection concern this will be reported by NICCY to the appropriate authority and this shall not constitute a breach of confidentiality.
This will depend on the facts of the complaint and the complexity of the matter. NICCY will deal with all complaints as promptly as possible.
No, complaints about the PSNI should be referred to the Police Ombudsman NI.
No, these are private law matters which fall outside the remit of NICCY as they do not concern the actions of a relevant authority.
No, the conduct of ongoing Court proceedings falls outside the remit of NICCY.
If you are unhappy with the decision of NICCY on your complaint, under certain circumstances we can review the decision. We will review a decision at your request if you submit an appeal within 21 working days of the date of the decision and can provide information to show that:
You have new information which is relevant to the decision; or
We overlooked a relevant issue; or
You have evidence to show that the relevant authority’s stated position is incorrect.