How to give us your feedback

You can make a complaint about any aspect of the services or actions of the department or our staff, including privacy breaches.

If you have a complaint or a concern, there are some steps you can take to help us help you:

1. Go local first: Many concerns can be resolved quickly and easily by speaking with local staff.
2. Act quickly: Please tell us about the problem as soon as possible. The earlier you tell us, the sooner we can act.
3. Make your complaint clear: To help us assess and resolve your complaint, please give us as much information as possible including details of the issues, dates, phone calls and any other supporting information. Tell us the outcome you are seeking or the action that you want us to take.

We can help by:

• providing an interpreter if you have language difficulties or are visually or hearing impaired
• letting you know where you can get further help and information.

If we cannot help you with your complaint we will give you advice about where to get help.

We will not accept complaints about:

• matters already dealt with or currently being dealt with by the department, another department or agency, court or tribunal
• matters that are impractical to investigate
• matters that appear to concern frivolous matters or appear to have been made vexatiously.

Anonymous complaints

Anonymous complaints will be accepted.

However, in circumstances where an anonymous complaint is received, we may find it difficult to thoroughly assess or respond to the complaint if there is not enough detail.

Contact us

You may submit your complaint by:

• calling 1800 491 467 (free call)
• sending an email
• completing an online form.

Alternatively you can contact the relevant area of the department directly.

How we action complaints

If you make a complaint:

• it will be treated seriously and actioned promptly
• we will consider human rights as part of the handling of your complaint
• we will provide reasonable assistance to you
• we will handle your complaint in a way that is culturally appropriate and responsive to any additional support you require
• in most instances, we will attempt to resolve your complaint within the local area
• we will deal with your complaint according to the seriousness, frequency and consequences of the complaint
• you will be given timely feedback about your complaint.

Privacy and your personal information

In the course of investigating and taking action in response to complaints, personal information will be collected and handled in accordance with the 11 Information Privacy Principles in the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld).

After you have lodged a complaint

We will keep you informed about the progress of your complaint and any action taken.

What to do if you are unhappy with the outcome

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your complaint, you can request that our Complaints and Advice Unit conduct an internal review.

Following this review, if you are still unhappy with the outcome, you can request that the decision be reviewed by the Office of the Queensland Ombudsman.

If your complaint is about a breach of privacy and you are dissatisfied with the department’s resolution of your complaint, you can lodge a complaint with the Office of the Information Commissioner.

NDIS participants can contact the NDIS directly about issues relating to their plan or if they are dissatisfied with the services they are receiving from the NDIS.

NDIS participants who have a concern about a NDIS service provider can make a complaint directly to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.

We will provide and pay for professional interpreting services for clients who have difficulties communicating in English, and can also arrange for interpreters in Auslan and other sign languages when required. Find out more about interpreter and translator services.

A privacy complaint may relate to the collection, management, use, disclosure or overseas transfer of your personal information (e.g. your name and address is given to a third party who does not have any involvement with your case). Privacy complaints must be made in writing. If you believe that we haven’t handled your information appropriately, then please complete this Privacy complaint form (DOCX, 164 KB) and let us know about your concerns. Once you have completed the form, please email privacy@dsdsatsip.qld.gov.au

Complaints under the Human Rights Act 2019 (Human Rights Act) can only be made about alleged breaches that have occurred after 1 January 2020.

The Human Rights Act requires public entities, including this department, to act in a way that is compatible with human rights obligations when delivering services and interacting with the community.

There are 23 human rights set out in the Human Rights Act.

If you believe that the department has breached your human rights, you can make a complaint directly to the department through our complaints process.

The department has 45 days to respond to your complaint.

We will assess all complaints received by the department for breaches of human rights, whether you have identified a human rights concern or not.