How to complain about the GCC
The GCC is committed to receiving, responding swiftly to and learning from complaints about our service as part of our commitment to continuously improve the service we offer.
Why your complaint is important
We view complaints as an important and useful source of feedback about how we have performed and how we can improve in the future. When things go wrong we will acknowledge our mistakes and try to put things right.
Is my complaint justified?
Many people are reluctant to complain or express a concern that they may have, but if you have had a negative experience or if we did not meet your expectations then you are most certainly justified in informing us of your concerns - we want to hear from you.
As a healthcare regulator, some of the decisions we make are based on our policies and standards. This type of decision will not normally be reversed unless investigation of a complaint shows that the policy or standard has been incorrectly applied. But we still want your feedback so that we can evaluate the fairness and impact of the standards and policies that are in place.
Making a complaint about a chiropractor
If you want to complain about a chiropractor, click here.
Making a complaint about a decision
We can consider complaints about issues such as
- Process
- Poor administration
- Timeliness of response and delays
- Poor customer service
However, if your complaint is about a decision where an appeal process is set out in law, we are not able to intervene, as these decisions are not under the control of the General Chiropractic Council
Examples are:
- A decision made by the Investigating Committee
- A decision made by the Professional Conduct Committee
- A decision made by the Health Committees
- A decision on an application for registrations
- Our handling of your request for information under the Data Protection Act or Freedom of Information Act
- Making a complaint about the services we provide
We aim for the highest standards of service but recognise that sometimes things can go wrong. We therefore consider very seriously all complaints about the standard of service we have provided. We will handle your complaint as follows:
1. If possible, we ask that you try to resolve the complaint with the person or team that you have been dealing with. If you are not able to do this or you would prefer not to, we will still take your complaint forward.
The contact number for the office is 020 7713 5155.
2. If you are unable to resolve your complaint with the person or team involved, you can contact the Complaints Officer by email at complaints@gcc-uk.org or in writing.
Please provide the following information:
- The names of the people you have been dealing with
- Any reference numbers we have given you
- Your GCC registration number, if you are a chiropractor
- What you think has gone wrong
- Why you are dissatisfied with the handling of your complaint
- What you think we should do to put things right
3. Our Complaints Officer will acknowledge your complaint. He may ask the relevant team or person to try again to resolve your complaint. They will aim to reply within ten working days but will let you know if this is not possible
4. If you remain dissatisfied the Chief Executive will then consider your complaint and aim to reply within ten working days. Again, the Chief Executive will let you know if he is unable to meet this deadline. This is the final stage of our complaints procedure.
5. The Professional Standards Authority may also be able to look into your complaint. They are responsible for overseeing the UKs health and care professional regulatory bodies. See their website here for more information.
We aim to treat you with politeness and respect, and expect you to treat us in the same way. We do not expect our staff to tolerate abusive, offensive or threatening behaviour. We have a policy about how we deal with unacceptably persistent contact or with unacceptable behaviour. That policy can be viewed here.
Where to send any complaints
If you wish to have a copy of the Complaints Policy either in a different language or in braille, please contact the GCC.
General Chiropractic Council
Park House
186 Kennington Park Road
London
SE11 4BT
If you wish to make a complaint about a council member, please send details of your complaint to the Chair of Council at chair@gcc-uk.org or by letter to the GCC offices addressed to the Chair of Council.
If you wish to make a complaint about a member of staff, please send details of your complaint to the Chief Executive at chiefexec@gcc-uk.org or by letter to the GCC offices addressed to the Chief Executive.