Complaints Officer

Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust; Truro; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking a Complaints Officer to support the delivery of an excellent patient and family experience by managing concerns, complaints, feedback, and enquiries in a timely and compassionate manner.

Based in the Corporate Care Group, you will be a key contact for service users, families and staff, providing information, signposting, and support throughout the complaints process while maintaining strict confidentiality.

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE level Grade C or above, or equivalent, demonstrating literacy and numeracy.
• Qualification in customer care, governance or administration.
• Experience working to tight deadlines with variable workload and communicating with staff at all levels.
• Experience in NHS complaints or PALS and/or Complaints role, customer-focused.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of complaints and enquiries independently, prioritising work and monitoring investigations.
• Communicate with patients, families, carers and staff via meetings, calls, emails, and letters.
• Provide advice on NHS and Trust complaints procedures and support individuals through the process.
• Resolve concerns informally when appropriate and escalate where necessary.
• Maintain accurate records on Datix and ensure compliance with regulations and Trust policies.
• Support complaint investigations and cover for the Complaints Manager when needed.

Skills

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Analytical skills

Datix knowledge

Microsoft Office

Education

GCSE level

Customer care/ governance/ administration qualification

Tools

Datix

Microsoft Office

Job description

The Complaints Officer supports the delivery of an excellent patient and family experience by managing concerns, complaints, feedback, compliments, and enquiries in a timely and compassionate manner. Acting as a key point of contact for service users, families, and staff, the post holder provides information, advice, signposting, and support throughout the complaints process.

The role involves direct communication with patients, the public, and Trust staff through meetings, telephone conversations, and written correspondence, ensuring all feedback is managed in accordance with national guidance and Trust policies. The post holder also provides administrative support for complaint investigations while maintaining strict confidentiality when dealing with sensitive issues.

Based within the Corporate Care Group, the Complaints Officer reports to the Director of Integrated Governance and Chief Nursing Officer and works closely with Clinical Governance teams, Corporate services, and clinical and non‑clinical managers across all Trust sites to deliver a responsive, accessible, and integrated complaints service.

Main duties of the job

Key responsibilities include:

Managing a caseload of complaints and enquiries independently, prioritising work and monitoring investigation progress.

Communicating with patients, families, carers and staff through meetings, telephone calls, emails and written correspondence.

Providing advice on NHS and Trust complaints procedures and supporting individuals through the complaints process.

Resolving concerns informally where appropriate and de‑escalating challenging situations.

Identifying and escalating patient safety, safeguarding, reputational or organisational risks.

Liaising with clinical, governance and management teams to facilitate investigations and complaint resolution.

Attending Local Resolution Meetings and supporting both service users and Trust staff.

Maintaining accurate records on Datix and ensuring compliance with complaints regulations and Trust policies.

Reviewing, quality assuring and proofreading complaint responses to ensure investigations are thorough, accurate and meet Trust standards.

Providing cover for colleagues, deputising for the Complaints Manager when required, and supporting the wider Patient Experience Team.

Building effective relationships across clinical and non‑clinical services and promoting a culture of learning from feedback to improve patient experience and care quality.

About us

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust (RCHT) is at the heart of acute and specialist care for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. We care for a population of around 470,000 people, a number that increases during visitor seasons. We employ around 6,700 staff, united by a shared commitment to deliver safe, high‑quality care. We provide services across three main hospital sites, with around 780 inpatient beds:

Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro

St Michael's Hospital in Hayle

As a teaching hospital, we're proud to work in partnership with the University of Exeter Medical School, the University of Plymouth School of Nursing and Midwifery, and Peninsula Dental School, supporting the next generation of health professionals. We're committed to staying at the forefront of medical advance; investing in our people, developing our facilities, and expanding the specialist care we can offer locally so more patients can receive the care they need closer to home. We have a growing reputation for research and innovation that helps shape better care for the future. The Knowledge Spa, located on our Truro site, is a vibrant hub for medical, nursing and professional education across clinical and non‑clinical roles. It plays a vital role in attracting, developing and retaining highly skilled teams.

We are driven by one clear ambition, Outstanding Care for One and All, care that's safe, kind and high‑quality. We are RCHT.

Job responsibilities

To be an employee of the NHS you need to successfully complete the following:

Identity Checks

Professional registration and qualification checks

Employment history and reference checks

Occupational Health clearance

Satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service check

Right to work in the UK

For further information please visit:

https://www.nhsemployers.org/topics-networks/employment-standards-and-regulation

We reserve the right to close this advert early.

We may be able to offer flexible working. Please discuss at interview.

We may be able to offer sponsorship but this is not guaranteed.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE level Grade C or above, or equivalent, demonstrating literacy and numeracy
• Qualification in customer care, governance or ad-ministration

Experience

• Experience working to tight dead-lines and managing variable work-load Experience of communicating with staff at all levels in an organisation Experience of working autonomous-ly and as part of a team Experience of producing and checking complex information and documents, identifying key issues and summarising succinctly. Ability to report and escalation mat-ters for attention using own initiative
• Prior experience in com-plaints or conflict man-agement Experience in the NHS in a customer focused role, in particular in a PALS and/or Complaints role

PRACTICAL AND INTELLECTUAL SKILLS (INCLUD-ING ANY SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE

• Excellent oral and written communications skills Ability to communicate sensitively and manage/de‑escalate difficult conversations Excellent attention to detail and analytical skills Confident in use of entire Microsoft package and able to learn new systems Knowledge of Datix, Local Authority Social Services & NHS Complaints (England) Regulations 2009, NHS Constitution, GDPR and Human Rights and Equality & Diversity regulations Previous experience working with key stakeholders

DISPOSITION / ADJUSTMENT/ ATTITUDE

• Strong in empathy and compassion Resilience when facing conflict Grounded in equality and diversity values An excellent team worker Flexible and adaptable Able to prioritise workload Able to build strong working rela-tionships

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

£32,073 to £39,043 a yearper annum pro rata