Sharing your views on services – whether it’s a complaint, concern or compliment – helps us to know what we are doing well, learn lessons from mistakes, and prevent them from happening to anyone else.
North Central London Integrated Care Board (NCL ICB) is the commissioner of NHS services in Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington. As a commissioner of services, we assess the health and care needs of the population of these five London boroughs, plan the services that we think are needed, and commission (pay for) these services from a range of providers, typically NHS Foundation trusts (who provide hospital and community health services), GP practices, dentists, optometrists, and pharmacists.
Should I complain to the provider or commissioner of an NHS service?
Usually, complaints about the care you have received are best handled by the provider of that care. However, you are also entitled to complain to the ICB as the commissioner of these services if you prefer.
Complaining to the commissioner may be the right option if you are not comfortable complaining directly to your healthcare provider. However, the healthcare provider will normally be given the opportunity to investigate and respond to your complaint directly. In cases where the ICB is the commissioner, the provider will be asked to share a copy of the complaint response with the ICB for monitoring purposes.
Please note, if you have already complained to your healthcare provider, the commissioner will not be able to re-investigate the same concerns.
If you remain unhappy following a response to your complaint, you should contact either your healthcare provider or the Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman (PHSO), see below for more information about the PHSO.
Looking for a GP or dentist?
For help finding your nearest GP, dentist, pharmacist or optician, you can use the online search on the NHS UK website or call 0300 311 22 33.
Who should I contact with my complaint?
This depends on which NHS service is involved.
Doctor, dentist, pharmacist, or optician
If you would like to raise a concern, make a complaint, or share a compliment about a doctor (GP), dentist, pharmacy, or optician, please contact the provider directly in the first instance. If you would prefer not to approach the provider about the complaint, you can contact NCL ICB Complaints team.
Hospitals, mental health services, and community services
If you would like to raise a concern, make a complaint, or share a compliment about a hospital, mental health service, or community service, please contact the provider directly in the first instance. If you would prefer not to approach the provider about the complaint you can contact NCL ICB Complaints Team.
Provider (NHS trust) contact details:
- Barnet Hospital
- Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust
- Barts Health NHS
- Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust
- Central and North West London (CNWL) NHS Foundation Trust
- Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust
- Chase Farm Hospital
- North Middlesex University Hospital
- Royal Free Hospital
- Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital
- Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust
- University College Hospital
- Whittington Hospital
NHS 111
The London Ambulance Service provides NHS 111 services in partnership with London Central and West to people that live in North Central London.
If you would like to make a complaint, raise a concern or share a compliment about NHS 111, please contact the Patient Experiences team at London Ambulance Service using these contact details.
North Central London Integrated Care Board
If you have a complaint relating to the way an NHS service has been commissioned, or you have been directly affected by a commissioning decision made by us, or you don’t feel comfortable contacting the provider of the service, please get in touch with the North Central London Integrated Care Board (NCL ICB) Complaints Team.
- Email nclicb.complaints@nhs.net
- Telephone 020 4515 1448 (Please leave a message requesting a call back. We aim to call you back within three working days)
- By post: NHS North Central London ICB, Complaints Team, 2nd Floor, Laycock PDC, Laycock Street, London, N1 1TH
Can I get help and support with making my complaint?
Yes. If you require free independent support or advice, or assistance with helping you to write a complaint, you can contact your local independent advocacy service.
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey
POhWER Advocacy is an independent NHS Complaints Advocacy service. They can write letters for you and help you present your case, if you wish.
Telephone: – 0300 456 2370
Text – Text the word pohwer with your name and number to 81025
Email: – pohwer@pohwer.net
Write to POhWER:- PO Box 17943, Birmingham, B9 9PB
Camden and Islington
Rethink Advocacy is an Independent NHS Complaints Advocacy Service They can write letters for you and help you present your case, if you wish.
Telephone: – 0300 7900 559 (option 2)
Email candi@rethink.org
What will happen once I make my complaint?
Once we have received your complaint, an investigation will start. We will try and resolve all complaints at the earliest opportunity. If we need a greater understanding about the issues that you are raising, the case officer may contact you to discuss your complaint in more detail and agree a date in which we will respond by. Once the investigation is complete, any necessary actions or learnings identified will be taken forward to ensure the incident does not happen again.
Will my complaint remain confidential?
Whilst your right to confidentiality will be respected, when investigating your complaint, we may need to share information regarding your case with a third party within the NHS. We will require your consent. There may be times when we need to share information without your consent for example, if there was a safeguarding issue to protect children or vulnerable adults.
What if I am not fully satisfied?
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 Health Service Ombudsman. There are time limits for taking a complaint to the Ombudsman, although the Ombudsman can waive them if it is perceived that there is good reason to do so.
The Ombudsman will normally only take on a complaint after you have first tried to resolve the complaint and have a response from the provider concerned. The Ombudsman’s website states the Ombudsman 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, Millbank Tower, Millbank, London, SW1P 4QP
How do I leave a compliment?
It’s valuable when you leave feedback about positive experiences you have had with any of the NHS services we provide in North Central London. This reassures us and our providers that we are providing efficient and quality services. If you would like to leave some positive feedback and give us a compliment, please get in touch with the NCL ICB Complaints Team.