Frequently asked questions about the complaints process

You must submit a written complaint to the Commissioner. You can do that through the following methods:

• By email to post@cyg-wlc.wales
• Through the Commissioner's social media accounts on Twitter and Facebook.
• By letter to:

Welsh Language Commissioner

Unit 2, Block C

Victoria Dock

Balaclava Road

Caernarfon

LL55 1TH

The Commissioner has legal powers under the Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 to deal with complaints about public organisations that come under the Welsh Language Standards. A large part of public organisations in Wales (and some British organisations as well) are subject to statutory duties. These include local authorities, national parks, health boards, police and fire services, Universities and Colleges, agencies within the UK Government and other public organisations.

If you have a complaint about an organisation that is not subject to the Welsh Language Standards (e.g. businesses or a large part of charities) you are welcome to contact us. Although the Commissioner has no legal power to act on complaints about these organisations, our specialist team will try to help you. A number of businesses and charities have responded positively to discussions arising from comments and concerns from the public. Click here to find out more about our work with businesses and charities.

An organisation that is subject to Welsh language standards:

If the organisation you are complaining about is subject to Welsh Language Standards you do not have to submit a complaint to the organisation first. You can complain directly to the Commissioner, and the Commissioner has a duty to consider every complaint he receives. However, the Commissioner encourages complainants to complain to the organisation in the first place, in order to give it an opportunity to respond, and offer a solution to the complaint.

An organisation that operates a Welsh language scheme:

If the organisation you are complaining about operates a Language Scheme you must submit your complaint to the organisation first and give the organisation a reasonable opportunity to respond. If the organisation does not respond to the complaint within a reasonable time, or if you are not satisfied with the organisation's response, you can then submit your complaint to the Commissioner for consideration.

For your complaint to be valid you must:

• Say who the organisation is that you are complaining about.
• Explain what exactly you are complaining about.
• Explain how the failure has affected you.
• Enter your name and contact details - it is useful to receive an email or postal address as the Commissioner will present documents to you when dealing with your complaint.

In order for your complaint to be considered, it is important that you submit as much information as possible to support the allegations of your complaint. To help the Commissioner fully understand and consider your complaint the following information would be useful:

• Dates and time you became aware of the problem.
• Location of the event.
• Links to web pages if relevant to the complaint.
• Any telephone numbers or email addresses relevant to the complaint.
• Photos, videos or audio clips.
• Copies of documents or correspondence that are relevant to the complaint.

It is not the Commissioner's practice to share details of complainants with the organisation. However, it is possible that in some cases it will be necessary to share some details with the organisation in order to enable the organisation to investigate what had happened. That may mean sharing a name or contact details in some cases. If you are not satisfied with the Commissioner sharing these details with the organisation, this should be noted to the officer who will deal with your complaint.

If a person submits a complaint to the Commissioner about an organisation that is under a duty to comply with Welsh language standards, the Commissioner must consider and decide whether or not they want to carry out a statutory investigation into the complaint. Before the Commissioner can come to a judgment about whether the organisation has failed to comply with a standard in the case of your complaint, he must carry out a statutory investigation. As part of the investigation the Commissioner will request evidence from the organisation in question by submitting a Notice of Evidence to it. The Commissioner will then consider the evidence that has been presented by you and the organisation and decide if the organisation has failed to comply with the standards set for it in its compliance notice. He will present his judgment through a report which will be shared with you and the organisation.

The Commissioner considers the complaint submitted and the evidence received from the complainant and the organisation in question.

It also considers the duty imposed on the organisation and considers whether the organisation's behavior equates to compliance.

On the basis of the evidence, the Commissioner comes to a proposed judgment. There will be an opportunity for the complainant and the organisation to comment on the proposed report and the Commissioner will have a duty to consider those comments.

The Commissioner will then come to a final judgement. Depending on that judgment the Commissioner can take further steps in order to improve the provision for users of the Welsh language in the future.

The Commissioner must consider every complaint received and decide whether or not he wants to carry out a statutory investigation into the complaint.

Before the Commissioner can make a decision regarding an investigation, he must first receive confirmation from the organisation that he is responsible for the issue you are complaining about.

If the Commissioner decides not to open an investigation into your complaint he will explain his reasons for making that decision to you.

If the Commissioner decides to open an investigation he must draw up terms of reference for the investigation and consult on the terms of reference with you and the organisation.

The Commissioner must present an evidence notice to the organisation which requires the organisation to present information and evidence that is relevant to the issue of your complaint.

Before making a final decission, the Commissioner must consult with you and the organisation by presenting a proposed report which sets out the decission the Commissioner intends to make.

If the Commissioner decides to take further action following his ruling that the organisation has failed to comply, he must enter those actions in the enforcement action register.

The Commissioner cannot try to find a quick solution to your complaint. The Welsh Language Measure sets out the statutory steps that the Commissioner must take when dealing with your complaint.

As the Commissioner carries out the investigation he will consult with you at two specific stages of the process. He will consult with you on the terms of reference of the investigation to ensure that the investigation considers all the issues relevant to your complaint. He will also consult you on his judgment by submitting a proposed report to you. You will have the opportunity to submit comments on the report and the Commissioner has a duty to pay due attention to those comments before reaching a final judgement.

If you do not wish to submit any comments on the investigation this will not prevent the Commissioner from continuing with the investigation. He will continue to share documents and his decisions with you for information and you will be able to contact and submit comments should you wish to do so.

The Welsh Language Measure sets out specific steps that the Commissioner must take as part of the investigation. Those steps include consultation with you and the organisation as well as submitting an evidence notice to the organisation. This means that an investigation is not an instant process. On average an investigation can take between 6 and 9 months.

If the Commissioner decides that the organisation has failed to comply with the standards of the Welsh language, he can decide to take further action. The Measure states that the Commissioner can take further action by:

• Require the organisation to prepare an action plan that will address the failure;
• Require the organisation to take specific steps that will address the failure;
• Publicise the failure or require the organisation itself to publicise the failure;
• Impose a civil penalty;
• Give advice or a recommendation to the organisation, or;
• Agree a settlement agreement with the organisation.

The Commissioner will consult with the complainant and the organisation on how he intends to proceed further when presenting his proposed report. The Commissioner can also decide not to take further action if he is of the opinion that no further action is necessary.

If the Commissioner decides that the organisation has not failed to comply with the standards of the Welsh language, the Commissioner can decide not to take further action or give advice or recommendations to the organisation.

If you have a complaint about an organisation that is not subject to statutory duties (e.g. businesses or a large part of charities) you are welcome to contact us. Although the Commissioner has no legal power to act on complaints about these organisations, our specialist team will try to help you. A number of businesses and charities have responded positively to discussions arising from comments and concerns from the public. Click here to find out more about our work with businesses and charities.

Complainants have a key role in the Commissioner's work to ensure that organisations comply with the standards that have been placed on them. A statutory investigation gives the Commissioner the power to force an organisation, which has failed to comply, to change its behaviour. The purpose of an investigation is therefore to enable the Commissioner to take steps to restore compliance or prevent failure from continuing and in turn to give assurance to the complainant that the failure will not be repeated.

You can submit an appeal to the Welsh Language Tribunal if the Commissioner rules that the organisation did not fail to comply with Welsh language standards. You must submit the appeal to the Tribunal within 28 days of receiving the Commissioner's final judgment.