ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS) is committed to providing customer service in a friendly, efficient and respectful manner. Your views are important to us and we welcome feedback on our services and staff, both positive and negative. We aim to make improvements on the basis of feedback and other comments received from clients, stakeholders and staff. If you make a complaint, ACTCS will try to resolve it quickly, courteously and fairly.
If you have a problem with ACTCS services or staff, it is often good to try talking about your complaint before lodging it in writing. Open lines of communication can often solve an issue in the first instance. If you have a problem that cannot be resolved on the spot by the person you are dealing with, you can make a written complaint.
If you wish to give a compliment or make a suggestion or complaint you can either:
ACT Corrective Services
GPO Box 158
Canberra ACT 2601
If you need assistance in making a complaint or giving a compliment you can speak to the Policy and Government Unit by calling 6205 2137.
If you would like to make a complaint or give a compliment in a language other than English, a Policy Officer can organise assistance for you.
If you make a complaint verbally by telephone or in person, the staff member who receives the complaint will identify your concerns and expectations and refer the matter to the manager of the area. Where possible, verbal complaints will be resolved within a few working days.
If the complaint cannot be resolved informally, you will be advised of the existence of a formal complaint procedure.
All written suggestions and compliments and complaints will receive an acknowledgment in writing within five (5) working days of receipt.
Complaints assessed as minor will be determined within 30 working days of receipt.
Complaints assessed as major will be determined within 60 days of receipt.
If a complaint can be resolved within a maximum of five (5) working days of receiving the complaint, an acknowledgment letter does not need to be sent. In these circumstances, the acknowledgement letter and the outcome advice may be combined into the one letter.
Your complaint will be forwarded to the Senior Manager, Policy and Government, who is responsible for implementing the Complaints and Compliments Procedure.
The Senior Manager, Policy and Government will forward the complaint to the Complaints Coordinator. This will be either the Director, Corporate Services; General Manager of Community Corrections or the General Manager of Custodial Operations, depending on where your concern is directed.
To resolve your complaint, the Policy Officer will:
ACTCS ensures that your complaint will result in one or more of the following
If you are not satisfied with the decision made by ACTCS in respect to your complaint about our services or staff, you may refer your complaint to the following:
Executive Director, GovernanceJustice and Community Safety DirectorateGPO Box 158Canberra City ACT 2601
ACT OmbudsmanGPO Box 442Canberra City ACT 2601Ph: 1300 362 072
We will need some personal details to investigate and advise you of the outcome of your complaint. ACTCS is committed to responsible and fair handling of your personal information. The information will be used in accordance with the Privacy Act (C’th) 1981 and the Public Sector Management Act 1994.
If a complaint is considered to be vexatious, ACTCS may elect not to pursue the matter any further.
A vexatious complaint is a frivolous complaint that:
If your complaint is considered vexatious, you will be notified in writing outlining the reasons behind the decision.
This does not remove your right to submit your complaint to an external party.
Anonymous complaints will be accepted, however, in circumstances where an anonymous complaint is received, ACTCS may find it difficult to thoroughly investigate or respond to the complaint without sufficient detail or the ability to maintain effective liaison. Also, we cannot advise you of the outcome. Should this be the case, there is a strong chance the complaint will not be investigated.
To help ACTCS provide you with a response to your complaint, there are a few things you can do to assist us:
