Complaints and Comments Policy

The Linnean Society is a small charitable organisation that strives to deliver the best services it can to its members, partners, visitors and supporters, and to continually improve these where it can.

If you have had a good experience, please let us know about it. We may reference your positive feedback anonymously in our annual reporting and publicity material, and may ask your permission to include your name or organisation.

If you have had an experience which fell short of your expectations of the Society, we would like to hear from you so we can look into resolving the issue as promptly as we can.

The aim of this policy is to ensure that those with whom we engage, as well as our staff and volunteers, have a clear and consistent procedure with which to deal with concerns and complaints when they arise.

We will do everything we can to deal with complaints promptly, fairly, proportionately and sensitively.

A complaint is deemed to be any expression of dissatisfaction by an individual, whether justified or not.

This policy covers interactions which an individual may have with the Society through channels. Examples may include:

  • Membership of the Society
  • Donations to the Society (including legacies, bequests and gifts)
  • The Society website and membership portal
  • E-newsletters and other e-communications sent by the Society
  • Events organised by the Society
  • Visits to the building, including research visits to the Collections
  • Society publications
  • Medals, awards and grant programmes administered by the Society
  • Society marketing materials, mailings, promotions and awareness campaigns
  • Hiring our rooms and associated facilities
  • Purchasing merchandise from the Society

This policy does not apply to complaints from members of staff, volunteers or individuals on work experience placements with the Society. These complaints processes are outlined in the Staff Handbook.

Our four scientific journals are partner published with Oxford University Press. Please see the journal websites for more information about appeals and complaints.

Anonymous complaints will not go through this complaints procedure, although they may be used to improve our services, especially if we receive multiple complaints about the same issue.

The Society will aim to acknowledge complaints made on social media where it can and may request that a follow-up written complaint is made where appropriate.

Complaints will be handled in accordance with the UK Data Protection Act 2018 and all UK data protection laws enacted to incorporate all or a part of the GDPR into UK law.
Complaints will be handled by individuals on a need-to-know basis and in accordance with the Society’s Privacy Policy.

The Society encourages addressing issues informally at first so they can be resolved quickly. It is expected that most complaints will be dealt with by the member of staff receiving the complaint. The member of staff will endeavour to respond to the complaint within 10 working days, seeking advice from the relevant Head of Department if necessary. If the complaint cannot be resolved satisfactorily at this stage, the member of staff will notify the complainant that they may make a formal complaint if they wish.

Formal complaints should be made in writing either by post to the Linnean Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1J 0BF, United Kingdom or by email to info@linnean.org We have precise criteria for making a formal complaint. When making a formal complaint you must:

  • Include your name, email address and telephone number so that we can follow up appropriately.
  • State clearly that you are making a formal complaint.
  • Explain the issue you want to complain about in a clear, focused and concise manner.
  • Ensure everything you say is true and accurate.
  • Use an appropriate and reasonable tone. The Society will not tolerate unacceptable language or behaviour, the terms of which are set out in our Membership Code of Conduct and Visitor Terms and Conditions.

The Society recognises the increasing use of AI in formulating complaints. While AI has many benefits, AI-generated complaints can be lengthy, overstated or inaccurate. If we suspect that AI has been used to generate a complaint that does not fulfil the above criteria, we may decide not to respond fully in order to manage the Society’s limited resources appropriately.

The Society reserves the right not to respond to complaints that do not adequately fulfil the above criteria.

Formal complaints will be recorded in the Complaints Log. The Society aims to acknowledge any complaint within 10 working days from the date of receipt, but formulating a full response to the complaint may take longer, depending on the complexity and nature of the complaint.

Formal complaints will be handled by the most appropriate member of the Senior Management Team. They will conduct an investigation, seeking advice from the CEO or relevant advisors if necessary.

If the complaint concerns an area covered in our Privacy Policy, the terms of the Privacy Policy supersede those outlined in this policy.

If the complaint is made against an individual, they will be informed and have the right to respond.

If the complaint concerns the behaviour of one of the Society’s Fellows, the procedure set out in the Society’s Standing Orders will supersede those outlined in this policy.

At the conclusion of any investigation the complainant will be informed of its findings and any resulting actions. Significant complaints will also be reviewed by the Senior Management Team to check they have been satisfactorily handled, and whether any general procedures need to be revised or any training given.

If the complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of an investigation, they may appeal the decision by bringing it to the attention of the President of the Society by email to president@linnean.org as soon as possible and no later than two weeks after receiving notification of the investigation outcome.

In order to protect staff from harassment and ensure the Society’s resources are not diverted from delivering our charitable purpose, the Society has the right to consider a complaint that has not been upheld closed. In this case, we will not acknowledge or respond to further contact with the complainant.

A vexatious complaint is deemed to be a complaint that lacks reasonable grounds, is made with the aim of causing disruption, or continues to be pursued after all appropriate avenues have been exhausted.

We reserve the right not to investigate vexatious complaints that lack reasonable grounds or are made with the aim of causing disruption.