Complaint to school about bullying

[pattyguirao]

Looking for tips on how best to set out a complaint to school about bullying - anyone had experience?
Thanks

[noblegiraffe]

Hard to say without any details about your complaint. Is your kid being bullied? Have you reported it before? What is the nature of the bullying?

[pattyguirao]

Hi, thanks for messaging, yes my daughter been bullied for over 2 years at her school. Has resulted in her now out of school for almost a year due to PTSD. Am sending in official complaint to the school stating they haven't upheld their own Bullying Policy. Just wondered if there were someone out there with experiences that would help.

[mumdebump]

It is really important that you get the school's complaints policy and follow the procedure in that. There should be a guide for complainants on the school website - check in the policies section or statutory information. Don't try to skip any stages. Most schools will have an informal procedure first to try to resolve issues. If the issue isn't resolved at the informal stage, then you can begin the formal complaints procedure.
If you are raising a formal complaint, then you'll need to put it in writing (the school may accept email). There may be a form in the complaints leaflet that you can use if you want to. Whatever written method, you use, be clear and concise. If there are specific examples of the school not following its anti-bullying policy, give them. (Make sure you have a copy of the current policy and any previous policies that applied during the time of the bullying.) If you have evidence to support your complaint, include it. You should also state what outcome you are looking for. It can be an emotional process so when you've got it all written down, I would suggest leaving it for 24 hours to reflect on it and then re-read it before sending.
The school should acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 5 working days and tell you what they are doing to investigate and resolve your complaint. You should have a substantive response within 20 working days - working days is considered to be school working days, i.e. in term-time, so don't expect anything to be done in the holidays. You can submit a complaint at any time though, you don't have to wait until term starts. I would use the holidays to gather your thoughts and put together your case. There isn't a time-limit on when you can submit a complaint either, although if it is too long after the event(s), it is more difficult to investigate.
I hope this is helpful - it's difficult to give more than general advice without specifics. Good luck.

[pgmum19]

thanks@mumdebump, that sounds like very good advice. I appreciate you taking the time to write the message. I feel a little stronger now :-)

[mumdebump]

You're most welcome. Do check your school's complaints policy as the timelines may be different to the ones I've given above. Also academies and independent schools can run different procedures to those of local authority run schools (which follow the government guidance for complaints procedures).