COUNCIL bosses have hailed a new customer service system a success, after seeing complaints drop by more than a third.
The new procedure at Sedgefield Borough Council directs complaints straight to staff able to resolve an issue.
Brian Allen, the council's chief executive, is delighted with new findings that show complaints have fallen by 35 per cent over the last 12 months - from 1,053 in 2005/06 to 679 last year.
Complaint response times have also improved with the average time falling from two to 1.5 days.
Mr Allen said: "When I was appointed chief executive in June of last year, I stressed that I intended to make engagement with our customers a key priority and shape our services around their needs.
"We are here to provide quality customer services and this fall in customer complaints emphasises that we are on the right track.
"Investment made in customer services has also enabled complaints to be processed with greater efficiency."
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