Complaints Procedure
Last updated: July 2026
If any part of our service has fallen short, we want to know. This page sets out how to raise a complaint, what we will do at each stage, and the timescales we hold ourselves to.
How to raise a complaint
Please put your complaint in writing to the address below. If you would rather raise it verbally in the first instance, call your usual contact at the firm and we will make a written record and confirm it back to you, so that we are both working from the same account of the concern.
BlackCores and Partners LLP
First Floor Office, 3 Hornton Place, London, W8 4LZ, United Kingdom
Email: complaints@blackcores.com
What to include
A complaint is easier to resolve well when it is specific. Where you can, please tell us:
- Your name, organisation and the best way to reach you
- The engagement or matter concerned, and any reference we have given you
- What happened, with dates where you have them
- Who at the firm you dealt with
- What you would like us to do to put it right
If some of that is not available to you, send the complaint anyway. We would rather receive an incomplete complaint promptly than a perfect one months later.
Our timescales
We publish these timescales so you can hold us to them. Working days exclude weekends and English public holidays.
Stage 1 — Acknowledgement
Within 5 working daysWe confirm in writing that we have received your complaint, record it in our complaints register, and tell you who is handling it. If anything in your account is unclear, we ask for clarification at this point rather than later.
Stage 2 — Review
Following acknowledgementThe complaint is reviewed by someone who was not responsible for the work complained about. We examine the engagement file, the scope that was agreed, the working papers and any correspondence, and we speak to the people involved.
Stage 3 — Written response
Within 20 working days of acknowledgementWe write to you setting out what we looked at, our conclusions on each point you raised, and what we propose to do. Where we have got something wrong we say so plainly and explain the remedy. Where we do not accept a point, we explain why.
Stage 4 — Escalation
If you remain dissatisfiedYou may ask for the matter to be reconsidered by a partner not previously involved. Tell us why you disagree with the outcome and, if you have it, provide any further information. We aim to complete a reconsideration within a further 20 working days.
If a complaint is complex enough that we cannot respond within 20 working days, we will write to you before that deadline explaining why, what remains outstanding and when you can expect our response. We will not let a deadline pass in silence.
How we handle complaints internally
Every complaint is recorded in a register that notes the date received, the nature of the concern, who reviewed it, the outcome and any action taken. The register is reviewed periodically so that recurring themes are addressed as process issues rather than treated as isolated incidents.
Raising a complaint will not affect how we handle your ongoing work. We do not treat a complaint as grounds to withdraw from an engagement.
Complaints about personal data
If your complaint concerns how we have handled personal data, you may raise it with us using this procedure, and you also have the right to complain directly to the Information Commissioner's Office at any time. You do not need to come to us first. Contact details for the ICO and your full data protection rights are set out in our privacy and data protection notice.
Matters outside this procedure
This procedure covers the quality and conduct of our service. It is not a route to reopen findings that you simply disagree with: if you believe a conclusion is wrong on the evidence, tell us and we will look at the evidence again, but a difference of professional judgement is not in itself a service failure. Questions about what our work does and does not cover are answered on our professional boundaries page.