Complaints Policy
BURLEIGH COMMUNITY COLLEGE
COMPLAINTS POLICY
PART 1 - GENERAL PRINCIPLES
Introduction
Burleigh Community College needs to be clear about the difference between a concern and a complaint. Taking informal concerns seriously at the earliest stage will reduce the numbers that develop into formal complaints.
The underlying principle is that concerns ought to be handled, if at all possible, without the need for formal procedures. The requirement to have a complaints procedure need not in any way undermine efforts to resolve the concern informally. In most cases the class teacher or the individual delivering the service in the case of extended school provision, will receive the first approach. It would be helpful if staff were able to resolve issues on the spot, including apologising where necessary. A concern can be defined in this instance as an issue that can be resolved by a conversation and a worry about an incident or event. A concern may develop into a complaint.
There are many different levels of complaint within the College but it is essential that they are all dealt with effectively and with reason.
Every person associated with the College will probably have to deal with a complaint at some time or another. When this happens it is important that we follow these procedures.
This complaints policy covers all aspects of the College, including community work and boarding issues.
Our complaints procedure will endeavour to:
· encourage resolution of problems by informal means wherever possible;
· be easily accessible and publicised;
· be simple to understand and use:
· be impartial;
· be non-adversarial;
· allow swift handling with established time limits for action and keeping people informed of the progress;
· ensure a full and fair investigation by an independent person where necessary;
· respect people's desire for confidentiality;
· address all the points at issue and provide an effective response and appropriate redress where necessary;
· provide information to the College's senior management team so that services can be improved.
The College welcomes genuine complaints and sees them as a way of improving educational quality and helps the College to become more open, responsive and accountable.
Section 409 complaints are dealt with in accordance with LEA guidelines.
PART 2 - HOW TO INSTIGATE A COMPLAINT
Any member of staff who receives a complaint should seek immediate advice and inform their line manager. Complaints relating to normal College activities should be dealt with as follows in the first instance:
Sports College activities - Director of Specialism
Curriculum (i.e. relating to teaching matters) - Head of Department
Minor pastoral matters (e.g. bullying incidents, - Head of Year or Division Head
minor fights etc.)
From students re other students - Head of Department or Pastoral Head
Major curriculum complaints (e.g. exam concerns - An Assistant Principal or Vice Principal
quality of teaching)
Community activities - Vice Principal (Community)
Boarding - Head of Boarding
Where complaints are unresolved they should be passed through the line management system and formal procedures invoked.
Complaints regarding a member of staff should be referred to a Vice Principal or the Principal. All major complaints (e.g. those relating to staff indiscretion, major fighting or bullying or physical violence) must be reported to the Principal, who in turn will refer them to the Chair of Governors.
A complaint regarding the Principal should be referred to the Chair of Governors.
Any Governor receiving a complaint should refer it to the Principal or Chair of Governors, without becoming involved.
A poster indicating that the College has a complaints policy, and that copies are available, should be displayed in the foyer.
In most instances of complaint three College-based stages should be adopted (refer to General Principles).
· Stage one: complaint heard by staff member (although not the subject of the complaint);
· Stage two: complaint heard by Principal;
· Stage three: complaint heard by the Governing Body's complaints appeal panel.
An unsatisfied complainant can always take a complaint to the next stage. There may be an additional stage if the LEA or other external agency provides an independent appeal or review.
A complaint may be made in person, by telephone or in writing. At the end of a meeting or telephone call, it would be helpful if the member of staff ensured that the complainant and the College have the same understanding of what was discussed and agreed. A brief note of meetings and telephone calls should be kept and a copy of any written response added to the record. If a second and similar complaint is made it should also move up a stage.
All complaints and the outcomes should be recorded. These should be held centrally in the main College Office. A simple pro forma is available to record this.
Complaints shall be monitored by a Governing Body Sub-Committee. Staff Governors should not sit on complaints panels involving complaints concerning members of the College staff.
The College will respect the views of a complainant who indicates that he/she would have difficulty discussing a complaint with a particular member of staff. In these cases the complaint will be referred to another staff member. Where the complaint concerns the Principal, the complaint will be referred to the Chair of Governors.
Similarly if the member of staff directly involved feels too compromised to deal with a complaint, he/she may consider referring the complainant to another staff member. The member of staff may be more senior but does not have to be. The ability to consider the complaint objectively and impartially is crucial.
The person investigating the complaint should:
· establish what has happened so far and who has been involved;
· clarify the nature of the complaint and what remains unresolved;
· meet the complainant or contact him/her (if unsure or further information is necessary);
· clarify what the complainant feels would put things right;
· interview those involved in the matter and/or those complained of, allowing them to be accompanied if they wish;
· conduct the interview with an open mind and be prepared to persist in the questioning;
· keep notes of the interview.
Resolving Complaints
At each stage in the procedure the College will want to keep in mind ways in which a complaint can be resolved. It might be sufficient to acknowledge that the complaint is valid in whole or in part. In addition, it may be appropriate to offer one or more of the following:
· an apology;
· an explanation;
· an admission that the situation could have been handled differently or better;
· an assurance that the event complained of will not recur;
· an explanation of steps taken to ensure that it will not happen again;
· an undertaking to review College policies in light of the complaint.
It would be useful if complainants were encouraged to state what actions they feel might resolve the problem at any stage. An admission that the College could have handled the situation better is not the same as an admission of negligence.
An effective procedure will identify areas of agreement between the parties. It is also of equal importance to clarify any misunderstandings that might have occurred as this can create a positive atmosphere in which to discuss any outstanding issues. A letter confirming the outcome should be sent to all parties to identify that the process has been completed.
If properly followed this procedure will limit the number of complaints that become protracted. However, there will be occasions when, despite all stages of the procedure having been followed, the complainant remains dissatisfied. If the complainant tries to re-open the same issue the Chair of the Governing Body is able to inform them in writing that the procedure has been exhausted and that the matter is now closed.
Complaints need to be considered and resolved as quickly and efficiently as possible. Realistic time limits for each action within each stage need to be established. However, where further investigations are necessary, new time limits can be set and the complainant sent details of the new deadline and an explanation for the delay. A complaint should, in most cases, be dealt with within seven working days.
As well as addressing an individual's complaints the process of listening to and resolving complaints will contribute to College improvement. When individual complaints are heard, the College should identify underlying issues that need to be addressed. The monitoring and review of complaints by the College and the Governing Body will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy and evaluate the College's ability to resolve complaints.
PART 4 - COMPLAINT HEARD BY GOVERNING BODY'S COMPLAINTS APPEAL PANEL
Appeals should be directed to the Chair of Governors. The Chair, or a nominated governor, will convene a Governing Body complaints panel.
The governors' appeal hearing is the last College-based stage of the complaints process and is not convened to merely rubber-stamp previous decisions.
Individual complaints would not be heard by the whole Governing Body at any stage as this could compromise the impartiality of any panel set up for a disciplinary hearing against a member of staff following a serious complaint.
The Governing Body may nominate a number of members with delegated powers to hear complaints at that stage and set out its terms of reference. These can include:
· drawing up its procedures;
· hearing individual appeals;
· making recommendations on policy as a result of complaints.
The procedure adopted by the panel for hearing appeals would normally be part of the College's complaints procedure. The panel can be drawn from the nominated members and may consist of three or five people. The panel will choose its own chair. This should take place within ten working days.
The Remit of the Complaints Appeal Panel
The panel can:
· dismiss the complaint in whole or 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 College's systems or procedures to ensure that problems of a similar nature do not occur.
There are several points which any governor sitting on a complaints panel needs to remember:
(a) It is important that the appeal hearing is independent and impartial and that it is seen to be so. Governors may not sit on the panel if they have had a prior involvement in the complaint or in the circumstances surrounding it. In deciding the make-up of the panel governors need to ensure that a cross-section of categories of governor is picked and should be sensitive to the issues of race, gender, religious affiliation and sexual orientation.
(b) The aim of the hearing, which needs to be held in private, will always be to resolve the complaint and achieve reconciliation between the College 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 his/her favour. It may only be possible to establish the facts and make recommendations which will satisfy the complainant that the complaint has been taken seriously.
(c) 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.
(d) Extra care needs to be taken when the complainant is a child but generally it should be the parent who complains. However, where this is the case careful consideration of the atmosphere and proceedings will ensure that the child does not feel intimidated. The panel needs to be aware of the views of the child and give them equal consideration to those of adults. Where the child's parent is the complainant, it would be helpful to give the parent the opportunity to say which parts of the hearing, if any, the child needs to attend.
(e) The governors on the panel need to be aware of the complaints procedure.
Roles and Responsibilities
The Role of the Clerk
The Department strongly recommends that any panel or group of governors considering complaints be clerked. The clerk would be the contact point for the complainant and would be required to:
· set the date, time and venue of the hearing, ensuring that the dates are convenient to all parties and that the venue and proceedings are accessible;
· collate any written material and send it to the parties in advance of the hearing, 3-5 days beforehand;
· meet and welcome the parties as they arrive at the hearing;
· record the proceedings;
· notify all parties of the panel's decision.
· permit a short adjournment if new written material is submitted.
The Role of the Chair of the Governing Body or the Nominated Governor
The nominated governor role:
· check that the correct procedure has been followed;
· if a hearing is appropriate, notify the clerk to arrange the panel.
The Role of the Chair of the Panel
The Chair of the Panel has a key role, ensuring that:
· the remit of the panel is explained to the parties and each party has the opportunity of putting their case without undue interruption;
· the issues are addressed;
· key findings of fact are made;
· parents and others who may not be used to speaking at such a hearing are put at ease;
· the hearing is conducted in an informal manner with each party treating the other with respect and courtesy;
· the panel is open-minded and acting independently;
· no member of the panel has a vested interest in the outcome of the proceedings or any involvement in an earlier stage of the procedure;
· each side is given the opportunity to state their case and ask questions;
· written material is seen by all parties. If a new issue arises it would be useful to give all parties the opportunity to consider and comment on it.
Notification of the Panel's Decision
The chair of the panel shall ensure that the complainant is notified of the panel's decision, in writing, with the panel's response within five working days. The letter shall explain if there are any further rights of appeal and, if so, to whom they should be addressed.
Checklist for a Panel Hearing
The panel needs to take the following points into account:
· The hearing is as informal as possible.
· Witnesses are only required to attend for the part of the hearing in which they give their evidence.
· After introductions, the complainant is invited to explain the complaint and be followed by the complainant's witnesses.
· The Principal may question both the complainant and the witnesses after each has spoken.
· The Principal is then invited to explain the College's actions and be followed by the College's witnesses.
· The complainant may question both the Principal and the witnesses after each has spoken.
· The panel may ask questions at any point.
· The complainant is then invited to sum up the complaint.
· The Principal is then invited to sum up the College's actions and response to the complaint.
· Both parties leave together while the panel decides on the issues.
· The Chair explains that both parties will hear from the panel within a set time scale.
Ratified by the Governing Body: June 2005
