Concerns and Complaints Policy

Rationale for policy

Al Salam Private School acknowledges that parents and caregivers have a right to raise concerns and air complaints they may have and to have them addressed appropriately.

The School’s approach to handling concerns and complaints is based on a commitment to:

• Provide a safe and supportive learning environment.
• Build relationships between students, parents and staff.
• Provide a safe working environment for staff.
• Provide a safe learning environment for students.

The majority of issues raised by parents / carers, or pupils, are concerns rather than complaints. Al Salam School is committed to taking concerns seriously, at the earliest stage, thus minimising the  number of formal complaints and recourse to formal procedures.

This policy and its associated procedures are to ensure that concerns and complaints are dealt with in a fair and transparent way. Concerns and complaints will be handled responsibly, openly and in a timely manner, with the aim of resolving the matter to the satisfaction of all parties.

To aid in efficient and effective handling of concerns and complaints, the school has put in place the following:

Should you have any concerns regarding your child, please contact the Form Tutor (classroom teacher) as a first point of contact.

1. Al Salam School has implemented a school generated email address (one for each family) using a unique Parent Code (P-code eg. P12345@alsalamschool.ae). It is used for all official communications and announcement of events during the school year.

• All official emails, such as the School Newsletter, is sent via the P-code gmail address. This is primarily used as a communication channel between home and school.
• All Nursery and FS Newsletters are uploaded via the stream in Google Classroom.
• All Primary Home learning (The Three Rs: Daily Reading, Weekly Review and Monthly Research) will also be uploaded directly in Google Classroom.

2. Al Salam School has appointed a Community Outreach Coordinator (COrC). The COrC will facilitate follow up and ensure issues are resolved satisfactorily.

Concerns and complaints Policy

Parents should not contact other parents or students about their concerns or complaints as the school will deal with them following due process. We also request that staff members are not approached directly during the school day or at entry/dispersal times to raise a complaint. Teachers are on duty during these times and should not be distracted from the supervision of the children.

Every effort will be taken to resolve concerns and complaints before involving other individuals in other departments. The points below outline the protocol for handling concerns and complaints: 

1.        For any general concerns that reach the school office by phone or in person:

• Our Front Office personnel will manage and resolve the concern where possible. It is anticipated that most cases will be taken care of sufficiently through this means.

• When a response is needed from a staff member, our Front Office personnel will email the form tutor or staff concerned directly, copying the email to the Line Manager of the staff member.

2.        If there are concerns or issues for which parents wish to meet teachers and you want an appointment, a staged approach to meeting teachers is in place.

Parents will first provide the following:

1. The reason they want the meeting

2. The name of their child

3. The class

4. Any previous conversations they've had regarding the issue

This will allow us to guide the parents to the correct member of staff. If parents are not willing to provide all information, unfortunately we will not be able to make an appointment with them.

Once the information has been provided we will follow the meeting stages below:

1. First, the Form Tutor (class teacher) who the parent has the questions for:

• Next, if the issue is not resolved the parent can request an appointment with the Year Leader (Y 1, 2 and 3) or Middle Leader (Year 4, 5 and 6).
• Then, the Senior Leadership will become involved, if the issue is still not resolved, Ms Esther (FS), Ms Lamia (Arabic / Islamic), Ms Annabel (Inclusion) or Ms Chameli (Primary).
• Finally, if still unresolved, the Principal, Mr Dyche-Nichols will meet the parents.

2. By teachers and parents following this, it will help parents get answers to their questions much quicker.
3. Where the concern is about any issue that may be more serious involving harm, bullying or personal damage, and / or a parent wishes to lodge a complaint, the receptionist will direct the parent to the COrC/CPO who will manage the issue accordingly and ensure proper follow through.

Records of all Complaints received are logged.

• Initial complaints received through the Front Office are send via email to staff concerned
• Records of emails sent to staff members regarding complaints are saved in a separate file
• Records of complaints that are dealt with by the COrC/CPO are kept in a confidential file.

Action  will include:

• reassurance that the issue will be investigated and dealt with
• assurance of a call back from the appropriate staff member / leader
• assistance in setting an appointment with the relevant staff member
• The COrC/CPO will monitor and record progress to resolution,  and follow up directly with parents to confirm that any issues have been resolved.
• Confidential records will be kept by the COrC/CPO, and all records of complaints will be monitored by the school Management
• Parents have  the right to contact appropriate school staff via email/ Google Classroom. Parents have access to contacting all staff who are directly involved with their child, including senior leadership staff.
• An immediate reply by staff is not possible, however parents can expect a response within 24 hours for confirmation of receipt and within 3 school days for follow up on action/outcome.

A parent/guardian can raise concerns or complaints about any aspect of the school’s operations.

We request parents to take note of the following points when lodging a complaint or a concern:

•  Raise your concern as soon as you can after the issue occurs
• Put it in writing, providing detailed factual information and communicate via the parent portal to the appropriate member of staff. If a written complaint is difficult, a request may be made for help in writing it or a voice recording made.
•  Maintain and respect everyone’s privacy and confidentiality
• Be calm, courteous, honest and sincere

When a complaint is justified, the school will work with you to find an appropriate remedy such as:

• An explanation or further information on what remediation measures have been taken
• Mediation, counselling,  or other support  agreed between the complainant and the COrC or relevant Staff Member
• Consulting the relevant member of the Governing Body
• An apology, expression of regret or admission of fault
• Change in a decision
• Change  in policies, procedures or practices
• Refund a fee

The school will implement the remedy as appropriate, giving necessary information. If the remedy is ongoing, the school will keep you up to date with progress.

Management of the Policy

Through implementation of this policy we will ensure that concerns and complaints are dealt with according to the procedures outlined above.

The Principal will oversee the policy, ensure its implementation and review its content on an annual basis. 
The Principal will report on complaints within the school to the Board of Governors as a part of his Report three times a year.