Raising a Complaint

Our goal is to maintain positive relationships with our families by resolving concerns and complaints promptly and fairly.

If you do have a complaint or a concern, please let us know using our online complaints form. If you are unable to access the online form, please contact the school and they will support you in accessing the online form.

To meet our statutory obligations when responding to complaints from parents and carers of pupils at the schools in our Trust we aim to:

  • Focus on resolution — we look for practical solutions at every stage of the complaints process and encourage informal resolution of issues at the earliest opportunity where possible.
  • Be impartial — every stage of our complaints process is conducted fairly and fully in line with this policy.
  • Be respectful — we treat all complainants with courtesy and expect the same in return.
  • Requests for reasonable adjustments to the process will be considered to ensure that Complainants can access and complete the process.
  • Be transparent — complaints will be handled in a timely manner, decisions will be explained clearly, and we will keep you informed of the progress of your complaint.
  • Improve — we will consider how your complaint and resolution can support our evaluation and improvement across our Trust.  

The Dean Trust and its schools will try to resolve both concerns and complaints informally as early as possible. Where this is not possible, formal stages will be followed.

The Dean Trust, we aim to give the complainant the opportunity to complete the complaints procedure in full. To support this, we have published our Complaints Policy on both the Trust and school websites.  Click here for our Complaints Policy.

    Have you read The Dean Trust’s Complaints Policy and wish to raise a concern or complaint using the online form?
    To support you in raising your complaint we would ask you to first read our Complaints Policy. Please see our complaints policy here.
    Our Complaints Policy does not cover complaints relating to the following, please click on each for more information and the reason for this.
    Concerns regarding admissions should be handled through our Admissions Policy. The Trust’s published Admissions Policy can be accessed here which includes links through to the Admissions Policies for each school within the Trust detailing how to submit an appeal. Also see Statutory Admissions Appeal Code, or complain to DfE.
    Complaints about safeguarding and child protection matters are handled under the Safeguarding Policy. Each school has a published Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy available on the school website.
    For urgent concerns, you should contact the school or Trust Designated Safeguarding Lead (Email: safeguarding@thedeantrust.co.uk) or you could also contact the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO).
    Complaints relating to data protection are covered under the Data Protection Policy and Freedom of Information Policy which can be accessed here. Complaints may also be raised with the Information Commissioner’s Office but we ask that you try to resolve these via our Data Protection Policy first.
    Further information about raising concerns if your child has been suspended or excluded can be found in the letter notifying you of your child’s suspension or exclusion. These concerns cannot be raised via the Complaints Policy. Also see The Dean Trust’s Exclusions Policy
    Complaints regarding the statutory assessment of a child’s special educational needs should be directed to the relevant local authority. Complaints about the school’s contribution to the assessment, for example, the school has not provided the requested information within a reasonable timeframe, can be made via this Complaints Policy.
    Complaints from staff will be dealt with under The Dean Trust Grievance Policy. Staff can access this policy via The Dean Trust intranet.
    This is covered in The Dean Trust Whistleblowing Policy which can be accessed here.
    Parents and carers can withdraw their child from any aspect of RE, including the daily act of collective worship. They do not have to explain why. If parents or carers are not satisfied with the handling of a request to withdraw their child from RE they can raise a complaint through the Complaints Policy. The right of withdrawal does not apply to other areas of the curriculum where religious matters may be raised or arise.
    These follow the published DfE processes and do not come under the remit of this policy.
    Providers should have their own complaints procedure to deal with complaints about their service. However, if this relates to a Safeguarding matter, the complainant should also inform the school or Trust Designated Safeguarding Lead at the same time as the provider.
    While The Dean Trust will listen to concerns around practices in a school before it joined the Trust, it may be unable to fully investigate matters that fall within the remit of this policy as the policies and practices of the school prior to joining The Dean Trust may be significantly different. If this does occur, The Dean Trust will act in the best interests of the child to resolve the complaint. This does not apply to Whistleblowing or Safeguarding issues which are covered under separate policies.
    Please select which stage of the complaints process are you raising your complaint/concern about (Required)
    Please tell us your previous complaint stage reference(Required)
    Which school is your complaint / concern about? (Required)

    About you

    First name of person making the complaint / concern (Required)
    Last name of person making the complaint / concern (Required)
    Email address used to communicate with you regarding the complaint / concern (Required)
    Enter your email
    Confirm your email
    Contact number to talk to you about the complaint / concern (Required)
    Do you have a pupil at the selected school or your concern is about a pupil?(Required)
    Do you have parental responsibility for the pupil?(Required)

    About the pupil

    Pupil first name(Required)
    Pupil last name(Required)
    Pupil date of birth(Required)
    What date did the pupil leave the school?(Required)
    What is your relationship to the pupil?(Required)

    Your complaint / concern

    Does your concern involve a member of the Trust central team (including the CEO), a Governor or Trustee, or the Headteacher?(Required)
    Please give details of your concern and the name of the member of staff who is able to resolve this for you if applicable.(Required)
    Please give details of your complaint / concern, including the resolution you are seeking.(Required)
    Please give details of your complaint / concern. This should include the reasons you feel that informal resolution has not been possible, outline the reasons why you remain dissatisfied, and explain what resolution you are seeking.(Required)
    Please give details of your complaint / concern. This must include the reasons why you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of the formal investigation and you should explain what resolution you are seeking.(Required)
    What actions do you feel might resolve the problem at this stage?(Required)
    Do you require to upload any document to support your complaint / concern?(Required)
    Please note: Under no circumstances should photographs of any pupils should be uploaded to this form. Also, please ensure you have permission to share any documents which you attach.

    Declaration

    Data processing consent(Required)
    Declaration(Required)

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