Complaints, consultations and feedback

ARB is committed to providing a high-quality, professional service to everyone who comes in to contact with us.

We have been collecting feedback via various channels from a wide range of service users which include new registrants who have used the online application facility, candidates who have sat the Prescribed Examination, those who have used the complaints process up until the Investigation Panel, those who have made formal complaints via the Board’s complaints procedure about our service and schools of architecture.

Amongst the feedback we collected in 2016, the information we received from those re-joining the Register and through our Customer Complaints Service was very helpful. For example in 2016 some registrants said they felt that the tone of the statutory notice and reminders was harsh and so these communications are being reviewed as part of a project reviewing the tone of voice of ARB correspondence. Additionally, we received feedback from registrants who were removed for non-payment of the 2016 fee, who said that they had not received reminders. This led to us implementing additional measures to alert people to pay their retention fee including extra text messages and social media posts. We also benefitted from the support of professional bodies who shared information about the fee with their members. You can read more about the feedback we received in the ‘Our role’ section of this Report.

We are fully committed to engaging with our stakeholders and regularly consult with them on matters related to new or existing policies. We use our social media channels, our website and e-Bulletin to publicise the consultations we undertake each year. Where appropriate, we also reply to consultations run by other regulators and other organisations. In 2016 we responded to two external consultations, one was run by the GMC, regarding developing the UK Medical Register to include additional information about registrants, and another was run by the General Osteopathic Council, regarding their Draft Guidance on Voluntary Removal Applications. You can read our submissions to both of these here.