Appeals & Complaints
Carers will not always agree with decisions made concerning a child or young person in their care. It is, however, essential that carers feel confident that their views and opinions regarding the decision have been heard by CSO and child protection staff, and that these views have been considered.
In most instances, disputes are best resolved by the relevant parties sitting down and discussing the issues in question. Sometimes, however, a more formal response is required.
CSOs should provide carers will information concerning dispute resolution processes and about how the appeal process works in their particular agency. Under service agreements between the CSOs and the Department of Human Services, agencies must have an appeals process in place. Hence carers can appeal a decision made by the agency to the person supervising the worker, then onto the Team Leader/Manager of the CSO up to the CEO of the organisation. Appeal or complaints procedures outline when and how the agency will respond to the complaint (ie. timelines, meeting the carer face to face, sending minutes of meetings etc).
In general, issues concerning the CSO need to be raised directly with CSO staff (where possible it is best to try to resolve the issue at the lowest level of the agency first) and issues concerning DHS need to be raised with the department via the CSO. DHS also has an appeals/complaints process which follows the above principle of appealing to different levels of the regional hierarchy.
Possible Referral Sources
DHS Complaints Management Guidelines
www.dhs.vic.gov.au/office-for-children/cpmanual/...
