The Townsville Catholic Education Procedure for Management of Complaints outlines the procedures to make a complaint and how to manage complaints
· Schools, colleges, outside hours school care and other facilities/programs in the Townsville Catholic Education system.
Townsville Catholic Education will adopt the principles of procedural fairness and natural justice throughout the complaint management process. This requires a fair and proper procedure to be used, which involves disclosure, a reasonable opportunity to respond and impartiality to reach a fair and correct decision.
It is important that all complaints:
- Are handled in a positive and transparent way.
- Are recorded at every level, properly documented and reported to the Principal or delegated person as soon as practicable. Documents related to the complaint are kept and stored in accordance with Townsville Catholic Education Office procedures.
- Can be made directly to the Principal of the school/college or to Townsville Catholic Education Office if the complaint involves a Principal.
- Are resolved with mutual respect and clear communication.
- Where possible, are resolved at the first point of contact. If this does not occur the receipt of the complaint will be acknowledged within five working days by telephone, in person, by email, or in writing.
Complaints management in schools is also underpinned by section 7 of the Education Accreditation (Non-State Schools) Act Qld, and Regulations 2017.
Procedure for people making a complaint
During the course of a child’s school years, a parent/carer, student or other persons may have cause to make a complaint about school decisions, processes, management,
Step 1: Discuss the complaint with the class teacher (Resolve at the first level)
If a complaint is with the child’s teacher or relates to an issue concerning the child’s experience at school, make an appointment with that teacher as soon as possible through the school administration. Discuss the complaint with the teacher and give the teacher an opportunity to suggest a solution. The teacher will make a record of the complaint and report the meeting and any outcomes to the school Principal. Together, parents/carers and teachers should be able to resolve the problem at this level.
Step 2: Discuss the complaint with the Principal (Seek support to resolve a complaint)
If the complaint remains unresolved, make an appointment to see the school Principal or their delegate to discuss the issue further. Alternatively, a parent/carer and the teacher may agree to ask the Principal to act as a go-between in informal conflict resolution in an attempt to resolve the problem.
If the complaint relates to more general school matters, the complaint should be raised directly with the Principal or their delegate. The Principal
Complaints about a Principal should be directed to an Education Consultant or
Step 3: Contact Townsville Catholic Education Office (Refer the matter to an external source)
If the complaint has been discussed with the Principal and is still not resolved, please contact the Townsville Catholic Education Office. Complaints may be lodged by telephone, email or in writing. The name of the complainant and the nature of the complaint will be reported back to the Principal. Townsville Catholic Education Office staff will then work with all parties to seek a resolution.
Anonymous complaints will be acted upon if enough information has been provided to allow for follow-up with the relevant school Principal.
Townsville Catholic Education Office, Phone: (07) 4773 0900 Email: director@tsv.catholic.edu.au 2 Gardenia Avenue KIRWAN QLD 4817; PO Box 861 AITKENVALE QLD 4814
Step 4: Independent review (Seeking external intervention)
If the complaint is not resolved through these formal processes, it can
Chairperson, Non-State Schools Accreditation Board Email, chair@nssab.qld.edu.au Telephone (07) 3513 6773 PO Box 15347 CITY EAST QLD 4002
Please note, when following the complaint process
a) At every level of the complaint process, a record will be made of the complaint.
b) To achieve an effective resolution for all parties, when making a complaint, parents/carers should ensure they:
- provide complete and factual information in a timely manner, preferably in writing
- deliver a complaint in a calm and reasoned manner
- avoid making frivolous or vexatious complaints
- avoid using deliberately false, incomplete or misleading information
- Include full contact details of the complainant.
c) In most instances, in the case of a complaint about a staff member, the staff member will be told of the complaint and offered the right of reply.
d) All parties have the right to have a support person throughout the process.
e) Matters involving harm and abuse will be referred to the appropriate authorities including Police in accordance with the Diocesan Education Council Student Protection Policy.
The full Townsville Catholic Education Procedure for Managing Complaints document further outlines how your complaint with be processed.
Student Protection Complaint Process
The Student Protection Processes for Catholic Education have been developed by the Queensland Catholic Education Commission (QCEC), in consultation with Catholic School Authorities, in order to assist Catholic School Authorities to meet legislative and procedural processes for responding to, and reporting, abuse, harm and behaviour of a staff member that a student considers is inappropriate.
