If you are experiencing a problem in your IPAS accommodation centre, there is a complaint procedure you should follow to try and obtain a solution.

You can find more details on the complaint procedure in the updated IPAS House Rules here

In summary,

1. You should first try and speak with the manager of your centre and see if it is possible to resolve the problem informally. If that does not work;
2. you should make an official complaint to your manager. Please include:
   1. Your name
   2. Your TRN
   3. Details of the complaint
   4. Details of bringing the complaint informally to the attention of the centre manager including any outcomes proposed or actioned.
3. Make a complaint to IPAS if your manager does not respond within 14 days or if you are unhappy with their decision If IPAS fail to respond or if you are unhappy with their decision, you should;
4. make a complaint to the Ombudsman or if the issue has consequences for a child, you should complain to the Ombudsman for children
   

HIQA

We further advise that you highlight the complaint with HIQA. You can do this by emailing this address: concerns@hiqa.ie.

HIQA are responsible for monitoring the quality of International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centres. Unfortunately, they do not inspect all IPAS centres.

Currently they only inspect "permanent" centres. Most IPAS centres within the system are "emergency centres", only a small number are "permanent centres"; it depends on the contract the accommodation provider holds with IPAS.

Either way, regardless of whether your centre is emergency or permanent, it is worth highlighting the issue with them.

The video below was organised by Doras Lumni (based in Limerick). The video gives an overview of the complaint process and also welcomes a representative of the Ombudsman office to discuss how they can help.