If it's an emergency and out of working hours, please call us on 01243 785339.
Customer promise
The council has an agreed set of standards for communications with you, our customers, we call this our Customer promise. The Customer promise sets out the quality of service you should expect from us when you get in touch:
We are committed to providing a quality service to our customers which is efficient, responsive and caring.
You can expect us to:
Be respectful and courteous.
Identify ourselves when talking over the phone or visiting you.
Be honest with you.
Be fair in our decision-making.
Use plain English.
Give clear explanations and reasons for the decisions we make or advice we give.
Try to provide a translation and interpreting service if asked.
Investigate any complaints made about our services.
Customer Service Centre
Residents who do not have access to online services at home and require computer use can visit the Customer Service Centre at East Pallant House.
We can help you:
apply for council services
view council services and general information
Our service standards and commitment to you
At the heart of our Customer promise is our commitment to our residents and visitors. We are committed to ensuring that every time you contact us you receive a positive and welcoming experience.
We will:
ensure that we deliver a high level of customer service to you and that your enquiry is resolved at the first point of contact wherever possible;
provide a consistent, co-ordinated and proactive service;
enable customers to provide feedback easily, through customer surveys, focus groups, feedback, consultations and the council's Complaint procedure;
be sensitive to your needs and do our best to ensure that you get the correct advice, help and support to resolve your enquiry.
Service standards
Our customer service standards are as follows:
Contacting us via our website
We will:
make it easy for you to access our website to find the information you need;
continue to refine and develop our website.
Contacting us by email
We will:
acknowledge emails within two working days of receipt;
respond to all emails received within ten working days wherever possible;
should you email a member of staff who is unavailable you will receive an out of office email directing you to another member of staff.
Contacting us by telephone
We will:
greet you, provide our name and ask how we can help you;
answer all calls as quickly as possible.
Writing to us
We will:
Respond to all written enquiries within ten working days wherever possible.
Facebook and Twitter
We will:
We will respond to all enquiries within 4 hours wherever possible.
Complaints
We will:
We will acknowledge your complaint within two working days of receipt;
Respond to all Stage One complaints within ten working days;
Respond to all Stage Two complaints within fifteen working days.
welcome and greet you upon your arrival identifying your need and provide you with assistance;
encourage you to use our self-service PCs where you are able to enabling you to use our online services;
provide help and support to you when required.
Translation and interpretation
If English is not your first language and you need some help in understanding any of the services the council delivers, we offer telephone or face-to-face language interpretation services.
