Te whakatakoto amuamu
Make an official complaint to Council

The first time that a complaint is raised with the Council, for example, via a phone call, it will follow a standard complaints management process with the appropriate area.

If the complaint you have raised has not resulted in an appropriate resolution or you have concerns about the way the council has dealt with you, you can ask for a manager to look into your complaint.

A official complaint could be handled by the Assurance Team for the following reasons:

• a review of a complaint has been requested
• the complaint is complex or has significant risk attached to it
• the number of complaints received for that reason is significant
• a Council employee (or former employee) wants to report wrongdoing to ensure integrity and accountability within the organisation. The Protected Disclosures Act 2000 (or “Whistle blowers” Act) protects employees who make such disclosures.

These complaints are managed on a case by case basis.

There are occasionally situations where the Wellington City Council does not provide a solution that a complainant is wanting. In this instance if you wish to pursue the matter further there are a number of options available to you. 

This could include:

• contacting the Office of the Ombudsman who supports the community in its dealings with government agencies
• seeking independent legal advice.

We aim to be accessible and responsive

• It will be easy for you to make a complaint if you wish to do so
• We will acknowledge your complaint within three days and keep you updated on the progress of your complaint process
• We will consider your complaint as efficiently as possible
• We will communicate in a way that is easy for you to understand.

We aim to be open and fair

• We will treat you with respect at all times
• Complaints are dealt with in a clear and objective way
• We will work to see things from your perspective, to understand and address what you think is wrong
• We will ensure that information provided to you is accurate and up-to-date.

We aim to constantly improve

• We will ensure that any issues brought to our attention will be assessed on their own merits
• We will use complaints as an opportunity to improve the way we operate
• We will acknowledge where we have made a mistake and strive to put things right for you
• We will continue to work with our staff to ensure they understand good processes and procedures for resolving complaints.

Your information will remain confidential

• Any personal information provided as part of your complaint will be treated as confidential
• We will work with you if someone seeks access to identifying personal information about your complaint.

If you would like to make a protected disclosure or allegation of fraud, you can:

• call 04 499 4444 and request to speak to the Principal Advisor Internal Audit
• online – Protected Disclosure form
• address your concerns by post to:

Principal Advisor Internal Audit
Wellington City Council
PO Box 2199
Wellington 6140