School Complaints Procedure

The staff and governors at each school in Halton are committed to providing a high quality education for your child in a secure and supportive environment. Whilst all concerned strive to achieve their best for the welfare of the pupils at the school, it is appreciated that there may be occasions when you have concerns about your child's education or about particular incidents which have occurred at school. If such a situation arises, we would ask you to follow the procedure outlined below.

Stage One - Many concerns can be resolved quickly with goodwill, often by making early contact with the class teacher or Head of Year. If this is not possible, or the teacher is unable to resolve the concern, the parent, carer or pupil should contact the Head Teacher or Deputy Head Teacher. The person who receives the complaint should attempt to work with the family to resolve the complaint informally. This may involve

Mediation and conciliation
Explaining policies or decisions
Helping the pupil to express their views to another person
Review of educational provision
Review of support services
Most complaints will be dealt with in this way.

Stage Two - If the pupil, parent or carer is not satisfied with the outcome of the informal investigation, they may wish to make a formal complaint. This should be done in writing to the Head Teacher. If the complaint is about the Head Teacher, or if the problem is not resolved, the matter should be referred to the Chair of Governors of the school. The school and its governors have a duty in law to act properly and investigate complaints impartially. Once investigations are complete the person making the complaint should receive a written response from the school.

Stage Three - Pupils, parents and carers who are not satisfied with the outcome of the investigation and wish to pursue a complaint regarding a school issue can refer the complaint to a review committee of Governors, known as the Complaints Panel. This can be done in writing to the Chair of the Governing Body. The aim of the panel is to establish any areas of agreement and identify actions that can be taken to resolve the complaint.

Stage Four - If all other attempts to resolve the complaint have been unsuccessful the pupil, parent or carer may refer their complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman or Secretary of State for Education.

Complain about an academy or free school

You can complain to the Education Funding Agency (EFA) if:

there’s a problem with the school’s complaints procedure
the school is not following the terms of its funding agreement

EFA can’t deal with all types of complaint and you may need to contact a different agency.

For more information go to: https://www.gov.uk/complain-about-school