At Holden Park School, we strive to provide a good education for all our children. The Head Teacher and staff work very hard to build positive relationships with all parents, carers and the general public. This procedure aims to seek a resolution to a complaint and restore positive relationships. In the case of parental complaints, the aim is to arrive at a resolution that is in the best interests of the pupil.

The following policy sets out the procedures that the school follows in such cases.

• If any parents/carers are unhappy with the education that their child is receiving or have any concerns relating to the school, we encourage them to talk to the child’s class teacher immediately
• We stress that there is a clear difference between a concern and a complaint. We take informal concerns seriously, and as a result, few develop into formal complaints. A ‘concern’ may be defined as ‘an expression of worry or doubt over an issue considered to be important for which reassurances are sought’. A complaint may be generally defined as ‘an expression of dissatisfaction, made about actions taken or a lack of action’.
• Parents/carers should be assured that making a complaint will not adversely affect their child. This policy is published on our website as well as referred to in our …….

Aims

Our school aims to be fair, open and honest when dealing with any complaint. We give careful consideration to all complaints and deal with them as swiftly as possible. We aim to resolve any complaint through dialogue and mutual understanding. Our complaints procedure is accessible and simple to use, and understand. It aims to be non-adversarial. In all cases, we put the interests of the child above all else.

• Any complaint raised will be treated seriously and courteously. You will be allowed to make your concerns known, and school staff must be given time to properly investigate them in order for the matter to be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction. It is important that you have confidence in these procedures and know that the matter will be investigated impartially and dealt with as quickly as possible. Resolving concerns involves balancing the rights and responsibilities of pupils, parents and school staff; there should be recognition that responsibility rests with each of these parties.
• To ensure that complaints are managed with total impartiality and the confidentiality required, we would request that you do not discuss your concerns on social networking sites (e.g. Facebook or WhatsApp). This can be potentially damaging for the school and/or its pupils, can reach a much wider audience than you might have intended, and more importantly, does not allow the school to resolve the issue.
• Confidentiality should be maintained at all times by all concerned. All conversations and correspondence must be treated with discretion. However, you will need to accept that some sharing of information within the school will be inevitable if the complaint is to be investigated fully and fairly. This will be done with sensitivity and will take into account confidentiality. You should feel confident that a complaint will not disadvantage your child.
• Schools are mindful of GDPR and are not allowed to disclose personal information relating to third parties, i.e. other pupils, other parents, staff, etc.
• Complaints about services provided by other suppliers which have been endorsed by the Holden Park School (e.g. gymnastics, football, music and movement) should follow the Holden Park School complaints procedure. If you are unsure whether the service your complaint is regarding is endorsed by Holden Park or not, please ask the Head Teacher for clarification.