Complaints to maintained schools

What is the complaints procedure for a complaint against a maintained school? 

A maintained school means "a community, foundation or voluntary school, a community or foundation special school or a maintained nursery school" (Section 39 Education Act 2002). 

In accordance with Section 29 Education Act 2002, every maintained school and maintained nursery must have a published written complaints procedure.

The Department for Education has issued a non-statutory advice document on Best practice advice for school complaints procedures to help schools and local authorities understand their legal obligations in this area. 

Complaint against a maintained school - Flowchart

Request a copy of the school’s complaints policy and other relevant policies and take note of what this policy says about the school's complaints process.

 

Write a letter to the school requesting a copy of your child’s education records under the Education (Pupil Information) (England) Regulations 2005 and the Data Protection Act 1998. These school records should be made available to you within 15 school days.

 

Write your letter of complaint and submit this in line with the process set out in the school’s complaints policy. Our 'How-To Guide' on 'Complaints To Schools' has further information and a sample letter.

 

If you are unhappy with the outcome of the internal complaints process (i.e. through the head teacher and then the governing body), you might wish to escalate your complaint to the Department for Education. The Department for Education may intervene if the school failed to act in accordance with its duties under education law or acted (or is proposing to act) unreasonably when exercising education related functions

Can I make a complaint to the school?

The school must not limit complaints to parents or carers of children that are registered at the school. Anyone can make a complaint about any provision of facilities or services that a school provides, unless separate statutory procedures apply (such as exclusions or admissions). This includes:

• parents or carers of children no longer at the school
• members of the public

What information do I need to make a complaint?

You should write to the head teacher of the school and request a copy of the school's complaints policy/procedure. 

You may also wish to ask for disclosure of your child's educational records under the Education (Pupil Information) (England) Regulations 2005. These records should be made available within 15 school days. Please note the school can charge a fee (not exceeding the cost of supply) for photocopying but not for viewing these records.

How do I interpret the complaints policy?

If the policy uses the words "must" or "will", the school is required to carry out that action. If the policy uses the term "should" or "may", the school is not under a specific obligation to carry out that action. 

What stages of complaint are possible?

The departmental advice recommends a 4 stage procedure for complaints, if this is appropriate, as follows:

1. Complaint to staff member (informal)
2. Complaint to head teacher (formal)
3. Complaint to the chair of the governing body
4. Complaint to governing body appeal panel

 

Each school may have a different procedure for complaints but it is very common for an initial complaint to be made in writing to the head teacher of the school. It is also good practice to send a copy of your complaint to the chair of governors.

Your complaint will then be addressed either through correspondence or through a meeting with the chair of governors depending on the school's complaints procedure.

The departmental advice recommends that the person investigating the complaint should investigate what has happened so far and who has been involved, and clarify what needs to be resolved by meeting with you. The person investigating is recommended to keep a written record of any meetings in relation to the complaint as well as the progress and final outcome of the complaint. 

There should be a reasonable timeframe for dealing with the complaint and the school should inform you of any deadlines and delays. 

What happens at the governing body review?

Governing bodies are expected to regularly monitor and review complaints received by a school. The governing body appeal panel can reach any of the following decisions when considering a complaint:

• dismiss the complaint in whole or in part;
• uphold the complaint in whole or in part;
• make a decision on action needed to resolve the complaint;
• recommend changes to the school's systems and procedures to prevent the issue from happening again. 

The departmental advice recommends that any governing body review meeting is served by a 'clerk', whose role includes:

• communicating details of the Review Meeting to the person making the complaint;
• sharing written materials; and
• keeping a written record of the meeting.

It is also recommended that the chair of governors chairs the meeting.

What outcome can I expect from the school?

When making the complaint, you should consider asking the school for the list of available remedies. The departmental advice recommends the following types of outcome:

• acknowledging the complaint as valid;
• issuing an apology;
• providing an explanation;
• admitting that the situation was not handled correctly;
• outlining the steps to prevent the situation from happening again;
• agreeing to review school policies.

Can I complain again if I am dissatisfied with the outcome of the complaint from the school?

There should be a procedure in place for escalating a complaint if you are unhappy with the outcome. Usually, a school will not look into a complaint about exactly the same issue where it has already been considered; there is a risk that the complaint is deemed to be vexatious if you try to pursue the same complaint. 

Can I make a complaint to the local authority?

The local authority can investigate the following complaints: 

• failure of a governing body to adequately respond to a complaint;
• failure to follow statutory guidance - e.g. failure to provide education to a permanently excluded pupil;
• failure to implement a Statement of SEN or Education, Health and Care Plan;
• failure to find a school place for a pupil.

Parents can ask a local authority to intervene under Section 62 School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This provision gives a local authority the power to take such steps as it considers necessary to prevent the breakdown, or continuing breakdown, of discipline in a school. The power can only be exercised where the local authority is of the opinion that the behaviour of certain pupils is severely prejudicing the education of other pupils. 

It is important to note that not all local authorities will look into school issue complaints, particularly if they feel it can be addressed within the internal school management system.

Can I make a complaint about teacher misconduct?

You can report serious professional misconduct of a teacher to the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA). The TRA will only look into cases where the misconduct could result in that teacher being disqualified.

Can I make a complaint to the Department for Education?

If you have exhausted all local procedures for your complaint, it is possible to escalate the complaint to the Department for Education in some situations. 

The Department for Education can check if the school has followed its policies and any other relevant policies as well as its legal obligations. The Department for Education will usually only act if it believes that the school or governing body may have:

• failed to act in accordance with its duties under education law
• acted (or is proposing to act) unreasonably when exercising education related functions

Any such intervention will usually be in accordance with the Secretary of State’s powers under Sections 496 and 497 (and 497A in relation to local authorities) Education Act 1996.

When considering a complaint, the Department for Education will review all the evidence provided, including the school’s published policies, to determine whether it is appropriate to take any action. Action taken by the Department for Education, where appropriate, typically involves explaining the legislative framework and what it means in practice at the school level; or recommending improvements to statutory school policies. 

Can I make a complaint to OFSTED?

Ofsted can hear complaints about problems which affect the whole school, after you have exhausted the internal complaints procedure; for example, the quality of education, poor management/leadership or neglect of a group of pupil's personal development and well-being. The Department for Education has issued guidance for parents and carers on Complaints to Ofsted about schools.

Ofsted will not investigate cases about:

• individual pupils;
• admission procedures;
• lawful exclusions;
• education for children with SEN;
• religious education;
• temporary changes to the curriculum;
• how a school has investigated or responded to a complaint;
• independent schools;
• colleges for 16-18 year olds.

Ofsted should respond to your complaint within 30 working days.