Strathfield Municipal Council

Complaints and Requests

Home   /  Council   /  Customer Service   /  Complaints and Requests

Any complaints or requests regarding any aspect of Council service can be made:

  • by an e-Customer Request
  • by telephone to Council’s Customer Service Centre on 9748 9999
  • by fax to 9764 1034
  • by mail to the General Manager, Strathfield Council, PO Box 120 Strathfield NSW 2135
  • by email to council@strathfield.nsw.gov.au
  • in person at Council's Customer Service Centre, 65 Homebush Road, Strathfield.

Complaints and requests are recorded in Council’s Customer Request tracking system and forwarded to the appropriate Council officer for action in accordance with Council’s Complaint Handling Policy.

We welcome your feedback on services received particularly where you are dissatisfied, as it provides the council with the opportunity to rectify and prevent a recurrence

Customer Service Standards

Requests for Council service are processed in accordance with Council’s Customer Service Standards.

How You Can Help Us

You can help us meet these commitments by:

  • Dealing with us honestly
  • By providing accurate and complete details with any queries
  • By phoning to make an appointment if you have a complex enquiry or need to see a specific officer
  • Letting us know when you are particularly happy with our services
  • Telling us how we can improve our services

Responding to Complaints

Council is focused on providing the best possible value in the services we deliver. Every officer undertakes this commitment when they commence working with Council. Nevertheless, there may be times when you are unhappy with the service you receive and consequently we have a complaint process in place to ensure quick and efficient handling of your concerns.

If you are not satisfied with any of our services or products and wish to make a complaint, you should do so by contacting Council as above.

Complaints about Council service are lodged and managed in accordance with Council’s Complaint Handling Policy.  This does not include complaints regarding suspected corruption or misconduct of Council officials including Councillors.  They must be either referred to the General Manager or directly to bodies such as the Independment Commission Against Corruption. 

Lodging and handling complaints is conducted as follows:

  1. The staff member receiving a complaint will deal with the complaint at that time or refer it immediately to the appropriate staff member who may be able to resolve the problem on the spot. 
  2. Staff will record the complaint and record the action taken to resolve the matter. 
  3. The staff member investigating the complaint will determine what, if any, remedial action will be taken and must ensure that all details of the investigation and remedial action taken or offered to the complainant are recorded and placed on the relevant file.
  4. If complaints have not been satisfactorily resolved at this stage or the complaint is a complex matter requiring investigation across a number of work or service areas, the complaint should be referred to the relevant Director to resolve.
  5. All complaints should be resolved within ten (10) working days from lodgement of the complaint. 

Council policy requires the finalisation of complaints by the relevant Council department. If complaints have not been actioned or resolved in accordance with the above process, Council’s Public Officer will investigate the matter and review how the complaint has been actioned and the steps taken to resolve the issue. The role of the public officer is to investigate and review the process. Their role does not involve resolving the original complaint.

The Public Officer will provide a report to Council’s General Manager, detailing the history of the complaint and actions taken to resolve the issue. The General Manager will determine the appropriate resolution of the outstanding complaint and the review of the complaint handling process. 

Measuring and Monitoring Our Service

We will continuously monitor our performance against the Customer Service Standards.

We will also monitor the number and nature of customer complaints and other customer feedback to see where and how our services need to be improved.

The Council aims to continually improve its service delivery and values feedback from customers on how services can be improved. Customers dealing with Council can expect staff to be open to new ideas on customer service and act on it where appropriate. We are committed to enhancing the knowledge of staff and developing technology to improve the standard of services provided to our customers.