Privacy and Complaints Policy

Privacy of Personal Information

If you require support from the Permanent Caregiver Support Service (PCSS) you will be asked to share personal information with us. The information we collect is for the purpose of providing support to you. The better the information we have, the better we can help you to work out what support will make a difference for you and your child.

All information collected from you will be held securely. We will make every effort to protect the confidentiality of your information. We would normally seek your permission before disclosing information about you to anyone else eg to an individual or agency who we agree will provide services to you. There may be circumstances where we are required to disclose your personal information to a third party by law.

In the unlikely event of a change of service provider, information about you and your child/young person will be transferred to the new designated service provider or held in secure storage by Oranga Tamariki Ministry for Children until a service provider is designated.

You have a right to request access to the personal information held about you by the PCSS. If you think the information is inaccurate you can talk to a PCSS social worker about having it corrected.

Formal Decision Review and General Complaints Policy

If you are not happy with a decision made about the support you can get from the PCSS you have a right to request a formal review. This formal review will be undertaken by Oranga Tamariki Ministry for Children. If you are still not happy you could ask the Family Court to review the decision. To ask for a formal review please contact the PCSS on 0800 367 7277.

If you are not happy with any other aspect of the service you receive from the PCSS you can discuss this, in the first instance, with a PCSS social worker. If you are not happy with their response then you can contact the PCSS Practice Manager on 0800 3677277 or email us on enquiries@pcss.org.nz.

If your complaint is still not resolved to your satisfaction then you can write to the:

Chief Executive Officer
Turuki Healthcare
PO Box 43002
Mangere Auckland

If your complaint involves a registered social worker you can make a complaint directly to the Social Workers Registration Board.

Email: info@swrb.govt.nz or

PO Box 3452
Wellington Central
Wellington 6140