Schools complaints

If your child has a problem at school you should be able to sort it out through an informal discussion with your child's teacher.  If you can't resolve a problem informally, the school should have a formal complaints procedure that you can follow.

Step one: contact your child's school

If you are worried about your child's learning or welfare at school, your child's class teacher or head of year is the best person to approach first.  Teachers will usually be in the classroom during the day, but you can leave messages with the school office asking the teacher to get back to you.
 
If the teacher can't help or you are not satisfied with their response, you can talk to the headteacher.  You should be able to arrange a meeting or a telephone conversation with the headteacher through the school office.  If this isn't practical, you may wish to make a written complaint.

Step two: contact the governing body

If your complaint is not resolved, the next stage is to approach the governing body of the school.  All state-funded schools are required to have a procedure to deal with any complaints relating to the school, or to any facilities or services that the school provides for the local community.
 
If you want to complain to the governing body, ask the school for a copy of its complaints procedure.  All complaints to the governing body must be in writing.

Step three: contact the Local Government Ombudsman

If you are not satisfied with the response from the governing body you can contact the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO).  The LGO is independent, impartial and free.  The LGO can help you resolve your complaint and will ask the school to take action if they find fault with the way someone has been treated or the way a service has been provided.  For further information and contact details go to the website or call the LGO’s advice team on 0300 061 0614.

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