Unacceptable and unreasonably persistent behaviour charter - policy statement

Treating our staff with dignity and respect

When dealing with our customers, we do not limit the form or amount of contact they have with us to ensure that we deliver the best possible service and meet our customer needs.

However, as an employer, we have a duty to safeguard the health and wellbeing of our people and visitors to our services. The Department therefore does not expect its staff or visitors to tolerate or be exposed to abusive, threatening, demeaning or offensive behaviour either verbally, digitally or in writing. Also, when needed, we will protect staff from a customer who, because of the frequency and nature of their contact, causes undue stress and concern.

Under this Charter we will manage unacceptable customer behaviour consistently and fairly. It sets out what we consider to be unacceptable, in order to protect our people from abuse and harm and explains the appropriate action we will take against those deemed to be displaying unacceptable or unreasonable persistent behaviour that can distress staff and strain our resources.

The policy applies to everyone who accesses our services and conducts business with us.

Principles

Whilst conducting DfC business with customers our people will:

• be helpful, polite and knowledgeable
• treat them fairly, correctly and with respect
• listen attentively, be open and be honest
• protect personal information
• carefully and clearly explain decisions about DfC business, including benefit claims,
• take steps to ensure a minimum waiting time for a service or decision
• ensure comfortable waiting areas and keep queues to a minimum
• ensure all staff and employed Security Officers are trained for the duties they are required to perform

We expect in return that our people and other visitors to our services are treated with courtesy and respect.

We recognise that customers can at times feel under pressure, distressed, agitated or angry about their situation.

In response we will distinguish between distress, frustration, forcefulness and determination, and any of these developing into unreasonably persistent and/or unacceptable behaviours.

We are committed to the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. This includes making sure we consider adjustments, where necessary, for people within the nine protected characteristics:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• marriage and civil partnership
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation
• pregnancy and maternity

We recognise people sometimes have difficulty expressing themselves or communicating clearly and appropriately. We will always consider needs and circumstances that we have been made aware of, before deciding how best to manage a situation. This will include making reasonable adjustments. However, we will not tolerate abusive language, shouting, passive or physical aggression, or any other form of unacceptable behaviour or action towards our people regardless of whether that be in the workplace or outside of work.

If a customer with a protected characteristic becomes the subject of a restriction under this policy, we will consider whether that restriction may affect them more than someone without that characteristic. If this is the case, we will seek to make different arrangements so that they can still access our service.

When deemed necessary following application of this Policy a customer may be added to our Unacceptable Behaviour Register. This register is accessible by appropriate staff and informs what safety control measures need followed when dealing with the person named. The customer/person will be advised of this inclusion where the details are known.

Definition of unacceptable behaviour

It is difficult to provide a strict definition of what constitutes unacceptable behaviour, but for the purposes of this Charter it is determined broadly as;

• behaviour or language that may cause staff to feel anxious, stressed, afraid, intimidated, threatened or abused, e.g. use of language that could be described as foul, offensive, demeaning, inappropriate, racist, sexist, homophobic, sectarian, threats of physical violence, derogatory remarks, harassment, inflammatory statements and unsubstantiated allegations.
• unreasonably persistent customers who, because of the frequency or nature of their contact, place a strain on time and resources, e.g. pursuing DfC business in inappropriate ways, pursuing issues that appear to have no substance or are outside of the DfC remit, or that have already been investigated and the outcome determined.

Unacceptable behaviour can be exhibited in many different manners, including in person, on the telephone, in written or on-line correspondence.

When dealing with this kind of behaviour, we will consider the frequency of contact, the content of the contact, any previous actions taken and the level of disruption caused.

Examples of unreasonable persistent behaviour include:

• making unnecessarily excessive demands on the time of staff. This could include excessive face to face/telephone/written contact, sending on-line correspondence to numerous members of staff or numerous correspondence to one staff member
• submitting repeated unnecessary contact
• confronting or intimidating staff outside of work

Where any behaviour is so extreme that it threatens the immediate safety and welfare of staff, we will consider appropriate remedial options, for example reporting the matter to PSNI or taking legal action. In such cases, we may not give the perpetrator prior warning of that action.

Suicidal/harmful ideation

If, in the course of our work, an individual threatens to harm themselves or others, we will consider disclosing this to a relevant health professional. We may also contact the police if a member of our staff feels that harm may come to the individual making the threat or when others are threatened with harm.

What it means in practice

DfC operates a zero-tolerance approach to unreasonable behaviour and will protect its staff and visitors from such behaviour.

If a customer does not treat our people and visitors with dignity and respect when conducting DfC business with them, we will use this policy to consider what safety measures we may have to consider to safeguard the health and wellbeing of our people and visitors to our services. When necessary, we will consider placing restrictions on how a customer may contact us.

Staff will complete behaviour incident reports following such incidents which are forwarded to their line manager. Upon receipt of a behaviour incident report a line manager can consider one of the following actions:

• take no further action
• issue an oral warning to the customer
• issue a written warning to the customer
• require the customer to be accompanied by another person whilst conducting business with our staff. The customer/person will be advised of this requirement.
• consider and action exclusion to DfC sites. The customer/person will be advised of this decision.
• consider removal of the customer from access to electronic means of conducting business with us. For example, removal from access to the Universal Credit Journal, not accepting/blocking their emails, move them to telephone claims, not accepting phone calls. The customer will be advised of the relevant decision.
• recommend the customer be listed on our Unacceptable Behaviour Register, which is accessible by appropriate DfC staff and used to determine if safety control measures should be followed when dealing with the person named. The customer/person will be advised of this inclusion where the details are known. When a person’s name is placed on the list, information will be included to indicate what, if any, safety control measures should be in place whilst conducting DfC business.   
• review the information held against a person’s name on Unacceptable Behaviour Register
• contact PSNI to report the incident or request a visit  

There is no running order to the list above and it is for line managers to consider what action to take following such incidents. This action will depend on several factors such as harm to staff, damage to property, what was said/written.

If a customer contacts DfC staff unaccompanied when they have been advised they should be accompanied then staff will avail of safety measures available to them such as advising the person they can’t be dealt with, pressing comfort buttons, retreating to safe areas, ending a phone call and not communicating via on-line means.

If an excluded customer enters a DfC site or communicates with DfC staff via other means, then no business will be conducted with them. Public office areas will be evacuated by staff, phone conversations will be discontinued, and on-line communication means will not be replied to.   

If unreasonable behaviour is displayed our staff will explain to the customer, that their behaviour is not treating staff and people with dignity and respect. The customer will be given the opportunity to improve their behaviour. If the behaviour continues in the same manner, staff will consider ending the DfC business being conducted with the customer.  

Where the incident is particularly serious, managers have the discretion to apply this policy and any sanctions herein without prior warning.

When this policy is applied to a customer, we will write to them setting out:

• that we consider their behaviour to be unreasonably persistent or unacceptable.
• what action we have decided to take in response to this behaviour; and
• how and when we will review any decision to restrict access to us and to what subject matter this will apply.

Review measures that have been imposed

12 months after we take the decision to apply this policy, a manager will carry out a review. They will make a recommendation to the relevant senior manager as to whether any restriction should be extended, amended or removed.

Where a customer/person continues to behave in such a way that is unreasonably persistent or unacceptable, we may decide to continue to apply restrictions.

Where a customer has changed their behaviour to the extent that we do not believe that the policy should still apply, we will amend or remove the contact restrictions.

Once we have completed this review of contact, a manager will write to the customer and advise them of what decision we reach, and why.

A customer can appeal a decision to implement this policy by asking us to arrange a review of the original decision.

A customer can request a reversal of the personal attendance/contact restrictions

In order for a reversal request to be considered, the customer or their agent must write to the Director / Assistant Director at the following address:

Department for Communities
Causeway Exchange
1-7 Bedford Street
BT2 7EG

no earlier than one year from the date of the exclusion.

The letter should contain the following:

1. an acknowledgement that when conducting business with the Department in the past, they did not treat DfC staff with dignity and respect as outlined in this charter
2. an acknowledgement that they are aware that they should treat DfC staff with dignity and respect whilst conducting business with the Department.
3. the reasons why they believe that the restrictions placed on conducting business with DfC staff should be reversed

Following consideration of their letter, the customer will be advised in writing of the decision taken.