Complaints Policy

WHOLE SCHOOL POLICY BSC POL 015.

Revision 02 : July 2016 Author: Dr J Scarth

Complaints Policy

The British School in Colombo COMPLAINTS POLICY AND PROCEDURE

Introduction The Directors are committed to ensuring that the highest standards are maintained at the school both in the provision of education to pupils and in every other aspect of the running of the school. A complaints procedure is an important part of the management of a well-run school allowing parents the opportunity to voice any concerns they may have through appropriate channels. This procedure has been adopted by the Directors to ensure a systematic and fair approach to the resolution of such concerns.

Any complaints by staff should be addressed under the school’s Grievance Procedure.

A complaint may result in disciplinary action by the school against a member of staff which would be confidential between that member of staff and the school, but otherwise complainants should be kept fully informed of the handling of any complaint.

Any complaint will be kept confidential unless it is necessary to involve other parties and will be dealt with as quickly as possible.

Initially all complaints should be made to one of the Deputy Principals either verbally or in writing and attempts will be made to resolve difficulties informally before recourse to the procedure.

The informal stage of the procedure should be exhausted before the matter is referred to the formal stage.

Complaints Procedure – Stages in the Procedure Introduction There are two stages in the School’s Complaints Procedure: an informal stage when staff will try to resolve the problem and a formal stage when the matter is referred to Directors if the complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of the first stage.

Informal Stage As stated above, most complainants’ concerns can be adequately resolved by discussion with the Deputy Principal. .

1. If the concern is not resolved by discussion then at this stage it is appropriate the specific complaint be put in writing to the Principal.

2. The Principal or a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) will investigate the circumstances of the complaint and may find it appropriate to ask for written statements from staff or pupils and to call for any relevant documentation.

3. If the complaint is against a member of staff, that member of staff has a right to be given details of the complaint and the opportunity to make representation about it.

These will be taken into account by the investigator.

4. The designated investigator will respond with the outcome of the investigation, normally within 20 school working days of receipt of the substance of the complaint.

The response may be in writing or at a meeting with written confirmation of the outcome.

5. A complainant must be informed of his or her right to have the matter referred to the Directors if the outcome of the informal stage is not satisfactory. Any such request by a complainant should be addressed to the Principal.

Formal Stage 6. Having exhausted the informal stages, when a formal request for the Directors to consider a complaint is received by the Principal, he will refer the matter to the Managing Director. The Managing Director will write to the complainant and the Principal giving details of the meeting, requesting copies of any documents to be put before the meeting to hear the complaint and names of any witnesses who either party may wish to attend. To protect any children involved it is not expected that children will be present and that any written statements will, wherever possible, protect their anonymity. Attendance by a child will be exceptional and depend upon the agreement of both parties, the child and the child’s parent(s)/carers. In such cases it is expected the child will be accompanied by their parent(s)/carers. The complainant will be informed of the right to be accompanied by a friend. The hearing should be within 20 school working days of the formal request to the Managing Director and documents be with the Managing Director 10 school working days before the hearing. The Managing Director will copy and distribute those documents within 5 working days of receipt.

7. The procedure at the hearing needs to be appropriate for the circumstances and is at the discretion of the Managing Director but is likely to involve: •

Managing Director introduces all participants and sets out the process and principals guiding the hearing.

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Complainant presents their complaint (information previously provided or relevant witnesses)

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Opportunity for the Principal to respond to information presented and ask questions of the witness

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Opportunity for the Managing Director to do so also

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Principal presents the school response to the complaint and any actions taken including relevant witness if necessary

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Complainant has the opportunity to respond and ask questions of witnesses or to query information provided.

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Opportunity for the Managing Director to do so also

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Complainant to make summary statement if they wish

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Principal to make a summary statement if they wish

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Opportunity for the Managing Director to put any further questions or re-visit any element of the information provided.

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Hearing is adjourned for the Managing Director to reach a decision with an undertaking to provide a written decision within five working days of the conclusion of the Hearing.

The Managing Director’s decision is final.