Complaint, concern or compliment

We value your feedback on the services we commission, whether it’s a complaint, concern, or compliment. Sharing your views helps us understand what we are doing well, learn from any mistakes, and prevent them from happening again.

North Central London Integrated Care Board (NCL ICB) commissions (plans and pays for) NHS services in Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, and Islington. As the commissioner, we assess the health and care needs of the populations in these five boroughs, plan necessary services, and commission services from a variety of organisations, including NHS Foundation Trusts (for hospital and community health services), GP practices, dentists, optometrists, and pharmacists. We aim to ensure that the services we commission treat people with respect, dignity, and compassion.

However, we understand that sometimes things may not go as planned, and if you are unhappy with the NHS care you have received, or commissioning decisions we have made, we are here to listen and help. In most cases the best way to resolve your concerns as quickly as possible, is with the staff of the service or organisation you are complaining about.

It is helpful if the NHS organisation/primary care practitioner providing the service is made aware of your concerns as they may be able to sort these out quickly for you. You can do this immediately by speaking to a member of staff in that organisation.

Alternatively, if you do not want, or feel able to contact the provider directly, you can raise your complaint through the NCL ICB Complaints team, who, in most cases will be able to liaise with the provider on your behalf.

Helpful Resources for Making a Complaint

If you would like to make a complaint or share feedback, you can find more information and resources using the below links:

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can complain?

Anyone who is receiving/has received treatment/care from an NHS organisation or primary care provider. You can also complain on behalf of someone else. Complaints raised on behalf of someone else are subject to the ICB receiving the patient’s consent or other evidence that you have the authority to act on their behalf.

How can I get support to make a complaint?

Making a complaint is not always easy to do. If you need independent advice or support you can get free support, at any time, from your local independent complaint’s advocacy service. They can write letters for you and help you present your case, if you wish.

If you live in Barnet, Enfield, or Haringey

POhWER – telephone: – 0300 456 2370 or by email pohwer@pohwer.net

If you live in Camden or Islington

This is provided by Rethink Advocacy, which is an Independent Complaints Advocacy Service, telephone: – 0300 7900 559 (option 2) or by email candi@rethink.org

Is there a time limit for making a complaint?

You should normally complain within 12 months of the event whilst memories are fresh, or within 12 months of becoming aware that you have something to complain about. It is sometimes possible to extend this time limit if there are good reasons why you could not complain earlier and if the passage of time would not hinder the ability to conduct an effective and fair investigation into the details of the complaint

Who can I contact about my concerns and complaints?

You can contact us in the following ways:

Email: nclicb.complaints@nhs.net
Telephone: 020 4515 1448 Our phone lines are open Monday – Friday 10am – 4pm (except Bank Holidays) Outside of these hours please leave a message requesting a call back (We aim to respond within three working days)
By Post: NHS North Central London ICB, Complaints Team, 2nd Floor, Laycock PDC, Laycock Street, London, N1 1TH
Online: Download our Complaints Form

How we handle complaints

We handle complaints about NHS patient experiences in accordance with the NHS complaints regulations (2009).

For eligible complaints you can expect an acknowledgement within 3 working days advising the next steps. If we require further information or your complaint would be better handled elsewhere, we will advise you of this before confirming the next steps.

Where we agree to take forward your complaint we may require consent to liaise with relevant providers or organisations, which are not part of the ICB.

Where your complaint is about a provider, we will need to share your complaint with them as they maintain the responsibility for answering to your concerns. We will ask them to send their response to the ICB for our review and approval before we send this to you. We may also need to seek independent clinical advice and/or involve contracting teams where applicable, before issuing the response.

We aim to provide a response within 40 working days; however, this will be dependant on the complexity of your complaint and the number of organisations or teams involved.

We understand that complaints can cause frustration, and you will expect a prompt response. Whilst our complaints team will strive to arrange a timely response, this is not always possible. It is important to note that we do not tolerate the use of threats, insults or any abuse towards our team. We also will not accept persistent or unreasonable demands. We request that you treat our staff with respect, and you can expect the same in return.

If you have any questions or would like an update on the status of your complaint, please let your case officer know.

Complaints about Hospitals, Community Health Services, Mental Health Trusts, Ambulances and 111 Service

All NHS services have a system for receiving comments and complaints. If you have feedback or a complaint about a hospital, mental health, community, or other NHS service, we encourage you to raise it directly with the organisation responsible for the service. Please note that the organisation providing the service remains responsible for investigating any issues related to your complaint.

For contact details of relevant providers, please refer to the links below (each link opens in a new window):

What if I am not satisfied with the response?

If you are unhappy with our response to your complaint, you should contact us to see if we can look into the case further. You also have the right to take your complaint to the Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). There are time limits for taking a complaint to the PHSO, although the PHSO can use discretion to waive the time limit if there is good reason to do so.

If you have already received a response to your complaint from another NHS organisation, the ICB will not be able to offer you a further response. You will need to either go back to the service that has responded to ask for their further consideration or refer your complaint to the PHSO.

The PHSO will normally only take on a complaint after you have first tried to resolve the complaint with the relevant organisation, and have a response from the provider concerned or commissioner. The PHSO website states the PHSO believes that the organisation should be given a chance to respond and, where appropriate, try to put things right before they become involved.

You can contact their helpline on 0345 015 4033 or phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk. Further information is also available at www.ombudsman.org.uk You can write to the Ombudsman at: The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, 47 Mosely Street, Manchester, M2 3HQ

Looking for a GP or Dentist?

For help finding your nearest GP, Dentist, Pharmacist or Optician, you can use the online search (Find services near you – NHS) on the NHS UK website.

Access to NHS Dental care for patients, both Adult and Children, can be challenging and the status of whether practices are accepting new patients or not can change daily, this inevitably means that available appointments are in short supply.

The ICB do not hold a list of NHS Dentists that are taking on new NHS patients, nor can we assist in finding an NHS dentist, however, you can use the following link which enables anyone to search for practices in their area that are accepting new patients Find a dentist – NHS (www.nhs.uk), please note, this is based on when the practice status was last updated. You can contact these practices to see when they are able to offer an appointment or to ask if they are accepting new NHS patients. If the practice has capacity and the issue is not urgent you may be offered a routine appointment, though this will vary from practice to practice based on their capacity and existing patient need. A number of practices may have a waiting list before they can see new patients.

If, in the meantime, you need to see a dentist for Urgent Care (such as, if you are in pain or have facial swelling) London has an NHS 111 service that diverts patients to a Dental Triage Service. These services are in operation 24/7 for patients who do not routinely attend a practice, have an urgent need and are unable to find a local practice which has capacity. If the Dental 111 Triage Service assesses that the issue is urgent, an appointment at an urgent dental care centre will be arranged. To access this service please dial 111.

CHC Complaints

We do handle some complaints regarding CHC, however, if your complaint is about an eligibility decision following a Continuing Healthcare (CHC) assessment, you will be redirected to nclicb.chcappeals@nhs.net. Please also refer to the NC ICB Appeals Policy and Local Resolution Process NCL ICB Appeals Policy.

An application for IRP must be made within 6 months of receiving the outcome of the appeal, the address to which the IRP needs to be made is:

IRP Facilitator, CHC Team
Nursing Directorate
1st Floor Wellington House
133-155 Waterloo Road
London
SE1 8UG

Email: nhsi.londonchc-irp@nhs.net

Obtaining Treatment or Appointments

The NHS Complaints Process cannot be used to expedite care or treatment, such as moving you up a waiting list, or obtaining medication as these are clinical services.

The ICB is not a clinical service, and we cannot arrange referrals for patients, or influence any waiting lists. Please contact your primary care provider (e.g. GP) if you are concerned that your symptoms require a referral to be made or updated to reflect your current health needs. If you require medical attention and are unable to obtain an appointment with your GP or Dental service, please call 111. In an emergency please call 999.

If you have been referred for a specialist appointment and have not received an appointment date, or are unhappy with the wait time, we recommend you contact the provider concerned as the ICB has no control over waiting lists.

Regarding the Referral to Treatment Time (RTT), also known as the 18-week RTT, if the hospital you are referred to is unable to treat you within 18 weeks, it is their initial responsibility to offer you an alternative provider who has a shorter wait list.

The alternative provider will also need to be contracted by the NHS to provide the same service. If the provider cannot make alternative arrangements, you can contact the ICB or NHS England (depending on who commissions the service).

Complaints about Medical Records

NCL ICB are unable to investigate complaints regarding your Medical Records as we are not the Data Controllers.

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) GP surgeries are the registered data controller of their patient medical records. NHS England is the registered data controller only for medical records in the instance that a patient is either deceased or not currently registered with a GP Practice.

Under GDPR, complaints or concerns regarding data governance issues must be raised with the relevant data controller. If your concern is about your records held by any other NHS provider you should contact that organisation directly.

A NHS provider’s data governance is regulated by the Data Protection Act, as opposed to an ICB policy; therefore, if you are dissatisfied with the outcome from concerns raised with the Data Controller, the Information Commissioner’s Office can be contacted via www.ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.

Complaints from Professionals

The complaints team do not accept complaints from healthcare professionals relating to their NHS contracts, invoicing, or other NHS services they have concerns about. Such concerns should be directed to our Enquiries team on: nclicb.enquiries@nhs.net.

If a healthcare professional is raising a complaint on behalf of a patient, then we will be able to proceed under the complaints process with evidence of the patient’s consent for the healthcare professional to be their advocate.

Compensation

Compensation is not available through the NHS complaint process. You may wish to approach your local Citizens Advice Bureau, which can offer free advice to anyone considering making a claim against the NHS for compensation and help put you in touch with a specialist legal team if required.

Freedom of Information (FOI) and Subject Access Requests (SAR)

The Freedom of Information Act (2000) – or FOI Act – gives you the right to request access to recorded organisational information we hold, promoting a culture of openness and accountability across the public sector.

Please see the NCL FOI information page (click here) or email nclicb.foi@nhs.net

To make a Subject Access Request (SAR) for access to information about you, held by the ICB please, email nclicb.subjectaccessrequests@nhs.net

The ICB Complaints team do not handle complaints regarding FOIs & SARs, please follow the above information.