How will we respond to unacceptable behaviour?
I do not expect my staff to tolerate unacceptable behaviour when communicating with constituents.
When this happens on the telephone, letter or email, we have the right to:
- place callers on hold;
- end the call;
- not reply to an abusive letter or email.
- In person, for example at a surgery or our office, we have the right to ask you to leave.
Before taking such action, we will always warn constituents that they are behaving in an unacceptable way to give them the chance to change their behaviour. However, a warning will not be given in extreme cases to protect our staff, for example, when a serious threat is made.
Where these circumstances arise, we will take the following steps:
- we’ll ask constituents to modify their behaviour and explain why;
- if the behaviour continues to be unacceptable, our employees will remove themselves from the situation. If the communication is by telephone, the caller will be told that the call will be ended;
- we will make a record of the incident. In all cases, I or my representative will investigate the situation and decide what action to take. This could include limiting a constituent’s contact with us;
- we’ll refer the matter to the police where a criminal offence has been threatened or committed.
Limiting contact may include:
- Appointing a specific point of contact for the constituent;
- Communicating only in writing or via a representative;
- No longer making surgery appointments for a constituent;
- Deciding not to proceed in a case when behaviour has been unacceptable;
- Ending all contact with a constituent.
- Where a decision to limit contact has been made, then I will inform the constituent in writing.