If we don’t reach these standards we want to know. To find out more about the types of complaints we can (and can't) receive, and to find out how to make a complaint, read our Complaints Procedure.
We know that people sometimes worry about what might happen if they make a complaint. Please be assured that making a complaint will not affect in any way the level of service you receive from us. For example, if your complaint is about an application for funding, this will not affect your chances of getting a grant from us in the future.
Raising a concern about something or someone we may have funded
You can raise a concern about:
- a current application for funding
- a project being carried out
- an alleged breach of the terms and conditions of our grant
If you're raising concerns about a decision taken to fund an applicant, we'll take actions to review the information and consider whether it would have affected our decision in the first instance.
Please note:
- We can't discuss any disagreement you have with a particular funding decision unless it involves a breach of the terms and conditions of the funding.
- We can't become involved in any personal disagreement you may have with a particular grant recipient. If your concern is a personal disagreement you should direct this to the party concerned.
- While we can take action to investigate breaches of a funding agreement, we can't enforce the law. If your concern involves an alleged breach of the law, for example a fraud, you should report this in writing to our Chief Executive or Chair of the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee.
Raising concerns
To make a complain about something or someone we may have funded please contact the grants and information team.
If you experience or anticipate any barriers to raising a concern, or need information in other languages, or in another format, please contact us for information on the type of support we can provide.
Responding to your concerns
We'll let you know within 10 working days if we're going to investigate your concern. Once we've done this, we'll let you know whether we intend to take any action as a result.
Right to confidentiality
As part of a review of your concern we may need to contact the party that we've funded. If we do this we will respect your anonymity and will honour any specific requests that you make regarding confidentiality.
Similarly, if you work for the party that you are raising a concern about, or are a named contact on a grant application to us, and you would like us to keep your details confidential, please advise us of this at the time you tell us your concerns. Your request will be respected.
If we receive information that suggests people may be at risk, we may need to share this information with the police or other appropriate authorities. In these cases, your confidentiality would be treated in accordance with the requirements of the investigating body.
Independent Complaints Reviewer
Complaints about our work are investigated according to our Complaints policy. Sometimes our policy requires a complaint to be investigated by an Independent Complaints Reviewer. For reasons of openness and transparency, we publish all final reports from the Reviewer.
The report below refers to a Complaint about the administration of our Arts Associates scheme. The Arts Council has accepted the report’s recommendations in full and apologised to the complainant. Changes have been made to the Arts Council’s procedures to take account of the shortcomings identified.