See Also: Acorn Child Protection Policy and Acorn Care and Education Procedures For
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MEADOWCROFT SCHOOL POLICY
Complaints
MC08
Date Approved February 2017
Next Review February 2018
Owner Name Lynette Edwards
Owner Job Title Head Teacher
Unlocking Potential COMPLAINTS POLICY
Policy & Procedures Guidelines for Complaints
See also: Acorn Child Protection Policy and Acorn Care and Education Procedures for:
Managing Allegations against Staff Referrals to the Independent Safeguarding Authority
Meadowcroft School – Complaints Policy
Complaints Procedures
Introduction Unlocking Potential 1. Meadowcroft School’s complaints procedures are available and made known to children, parents, staff, referring authorities and any other person or organization wishing to make a complaint. A copy of the procedures will be supplied on request to any of these persons / organizations.
All new pupils, their parents and new staff are informed of the procedures as part of the induction process. Whenever the complaint is to be reported to any outside authority or parents, the referring authority will be informed, a specific named officer will be consulted as soon as possible. The Headteacher has responsibility for the operation and monitoring of this complaints procedure. There is an adherence to the school procedures for responding to child protection concerns. All complaints are taken seriously, will be listened to acted upon as necessary. Procedures are in place for complaints to be dealt with, no matter the source, and are set out below.
2. Complaints from parents / Carers or others.
The procedures below will be followed in the event of a complaint, being made by parents and carer against the school.
If parents and carers have a complaint against the school, they may initially wish to contact the school informally either by telephone, by note or personally after making an appointment. The school will respond to the complaint within five working days.
If parents or carers are not satisfied with the response they should write formally to the Headteacher. The Headteacher will investigate the complaint further and respond in writing within fifteen working days.
Lynette Edwards Headteacher Meadowcroft School 24 Bar Lane Wakefield WF1 4AD Telephone: 01924366242 Email: [email protected]
If the complaint is against the Headteacher, the complaint should be addressed to Julie Taylor, Managing Director, Schools Division, Acorn Care & Education and send it for his attention at the school’s address. The Human Resource Director will investigate and respond within fifteen working days. If the parents or carers are still not satisfied with the response they should inform the Human Resource Director who will arrange a panel to hear the complaint. The panel will comprise of three people not directly involved in the matters detailed in the complaint. One member of the panel will be independent of the running and management of the school. The date of the panel meeting will be arranged to take account of the convenience of the parents or carers as well as the school and will take place within a time limit of fifteen working days. Parents or carers will be invited to bring with them another person or persons to support them at the panel hearing if they wish.
The panel will hear the complaint and will hear the outcome of the school’s investigations and response to these. The panel will then make findings and recommendations which will be communicated in writing Unlocking Potential within 5 working days to the Headteacher, the parents or carers and, where appropriate, the person complained about.
A written record of all complaints and their resolution will be kept. These records and any correspondence relating to a complaint will remain confidential except where the Secretary of State or a body conducting an inspection under section 163 of the Education Act 2002 requests access to the records.
3. Complaints from Pupils
The procedures below will be followed in the event of a pupil making a complaint against a member of staff, a fellow pupil or any other person or situation either in school or outside.
Policy
On admission to the school, pupils will receive information of how to make a complaint through the pupil handbook. Staff will ensure that the pupil knows how, and feels able to complain about any aspect of living in the school. Pupils may wish to talk to an adult they trust about a situation relating to school or a situation outside school. Pupils are reminded that, although they may speak to any member of staff, there may be occasions where information will have to be referred to other agencies such as Social Services. No action or reprisal will be taken against a child making a complaint or representation. Children may be accompanied by another person when making a complaint if support is needed. No person who is subject of a complaint may take part in the consideration other than it is considered appropriate by the member of staff handling the complaint, i.e.at the informal resolution stage only.
Procedures (for Parents/ Carers, Pupils and Others)
Stage 1 (Informal)
A ccomplaint will be supported and encouraged to resolve problems directly and immediately with the persons concerned, if considered appropriate by the Headteacher. Complainants will always be listened to and taken seriously if they wish to make a complaint. At this stage, an opportunity will be provided for the complainant to resolve their complaint informally. If a pupil or persons acting on their behalf, wish to make their complaint formal, they should inform a member of staff. Where possible, the complaint should be resolved immediately.
Stage 2 (Formal)
In the event of the complainant not receiving satisfaction at Stage One of their complaint, or if their complaint is about senior staff, or by persons acting on the complainant’s behalf the complaint will then be taken to the Headteacher or Head of member of SLT It will then be entered onto a complaints record. Pupils can ask for help with writing their complaint themselves if they wish to do so. The Headteacher or SLT member ensure that this record includes details of the complaint, actions taken in response to the complaint and the outcome of the investigation. The complainant will be informed of both the complaint and the outcome and if the complainant is a pupil, their parent / carer.
Unlocking Potential Some complaints will be referred to other agencies or to the Local Authority. If the complaint is against a member of the SLT, the complainant should ask to see the Headteacher. If a pupil wishes, an Independent Listener will be informed and invited to assist the child. A pupil may ask to speak to an adult from an outside agency. The school will wherever possible put the pupil in contact with a representative of the appropriate agency. The referral will be noted on the complaints record.
The Panel Stage
Where the complainant wishes to take their complaint further, it will be considered by a panel consisting of:
A representative of the school who is not involved with the original complaint /complainant A representative of Acorn Care and Education A person who is independent of Meadowcroft School and Acorn Care and Education The complaints panel hearing will take place within ten working days of Acorn Care and Education being contacted.
11. The Remit of the Complaints Appeal Panel
11.1 The panel will:
Dismiss the complaint in whole or in part Uphold the complaint in whole or in part Decide on the appropriate action to be taken to resolve the complaint Recommend changes to the school’s system or procedures to ensure that problems of a similar nature do not recur Follow the Checklist for a Panel Hearing (Copy included in Appendix 2)
11.2 There are several points which any person sitting on a complaints panel needs to remember:
It is important that the appeal hearing is independent and impartial and that it is seen to be so. No person may sit on the panel if they have had a prior involvement in the complaint or in the circumstances surrounding it.
The aim of the hearing, which needs to be held in private, will always be to resolve the complaint and achieve reconciliation between the school and the complainant. However, it has to be recognised the complainant might not be satisfied with the outcome if the hearing does not find in their favour. It may only be possible to establish the facts and make7 recommendations which will satisfy the complainant that his or her complaint has been taken seriously.
An effective panel will acknowledge that many complainants feel nervous and inhibited in a formal setting. Parents often feel emotional when discussing an issue that affects their child. The panel chair will ensure that the proceedings are as welcoming as possible. The layout of the room will set the tone and care is needed to ensure the setting is informal and not adversarial. All members of the panel sitting on the need to be aware of the schools safeguarding policies. A decision of the panel will be given in writing to the person making the complaint within ten working days of the hearing. It will include findings and any recommendations.
Unlocking Potential 12. External Review
Complaints raising serious concerns about the standard of care or education will usually be dealt with by Acorn Care and Education. If we decide that there is a need for an external and impartial view then we will engage the services an experienced person to give their considered view.
If you have made a complaint that has not been resolved satisfactorily, are not satisfied with the way in which your complaint has been handled, or if we have concerns about the conduct of the complainant, then the complaint will be referred to Ofsted who regulate both the school and the children’s home.
Contact details are: [email protected] Ofsted, Piccadilly Gate, Store Street, Manchester, M1 2WD Tel: 0845 6404040
13. Monitoring and Review
The School keeps the volume and nature of complaints received under regular review. Summary information is reported to Acorn Care and Education on a termly basis. Acorn Care and Education monitor the level and nature of complaints and review the outcomes on a regular basis to ensure the effectiveness of the procedure and make changes where necessary.
14. Record Keeping
We maintain a complaints register that records all representations or complaints, the action taken to address them and the outcomes. All correspondence, statements and records of complaints are being kept confidential but will be shown to OFSTED on request when they inspect. Copies will also be made available to the Registration Authority on request.
Records of complaints are held confidentially in the school and are kept apart from young person records. These records and any correspondence or statements relating to a complaint will remain confidential except where the Secretary of State or a body conducting an inspection under Section 109 of the Education and Skills Act 2008, The Education and Inspection Act 2006 and The Childcare Act 2006
Unlocking Potential