School and Academy Complaints

The responsibility for dealing with complaints lies with the Governing Board / Trust for each school or academy. Section 29 of the 2002 Education Act requires all schools and academies to establish and publish prominently, a complaints procedure. The procedure must be accessible to parents and stakeholders; it must be published on the school / academy website and available on request.

If you wish to make a complaint regarding a school or academy, please follow the schools / academies published complaints procedure. This can be found on the school’s / academy’s website or by contacting the school office and asking for a copy. This procedure must provide for complaints to be managed within clear timescales. 

The latest model school complaints procedure has been published following wide ranging consultation and is available to schools and academies purchasing a clerking contract with the Local Authority. It has been recommended for adoption by all schools in the Borough. 

Once the school's complaints procedure has been exhausted, complainants also have the right to appeal to the Secretary of State if they are not satisfied with the way the school has dealt with their complaint. However, the Secretary of State is only able to intervene in particular circumstances; specifically, where there has been a breach of a statutory duty or where the Governing Board / Trust has acted unreasonably with regard to the exercise of its power. He / she must be satisfied that a decision is unreasonable in the sense that no reasonable Governing Board / Trust acting with due regard to its statutory responsibilities would have reached that decision.

You may if you wish, complain to Ofsted, please see here for further information.

Complaints about academies

Due to their Trust status, the academy complaints procedure differs slightly, from that of other schools. Academies are required to have a published procedure for dealing with complaints by parents or stakeholders, which must be made available on request. 

The Cheshire East model complaints procedure includes additional information and can also be adopted by academies.

If parents or stakeholders are not satisfied a complaint has been dealt with appropriately by an academy, they should contact the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). If you would like further information, please see the ESFA complaints about academies.

Useful Links for Further Information

• Ofsted Complaints
• DfE  Complaints
• ESFA Complaints

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Page last reviewed: 06 October 2021