Concerns and Complaints
It is in everyone’s interest that concerns and complaints are resolved at the earliest possible stage. St James School values its relationship with parents, carers, and our local community and is committed to listening and finding fair and timely resolutions.
We kindly remind you that the Ted Wragg Trust complaints process is not a legal procedure. It is not about proving fault or transferring blame but about working together to resolve issues positively and as early as possible. Our approach is based on fairness, understanding and reconciliation and is guided by administrative law rather than legal process. Whilst we understand that some complaints may be detailed and are being supported by external tools, such as AI, we encourage complaints to remain focused on resolution.
We kindly ask that concerns are shared in a way that supports open and respectful discussion. Many issues can be resolved informally, without the need to use the formal stages of the complaint's procedure. We also welcome suggestions and comments outside the formal process as they help us make improvements.
The difference between a concern and a complaint
| CONCERN | COMPLAINT |
|---|---|
|
An expression of worry or doubt over an issue considered to be important for which reassurances are sought and a resolution is found at school level |
An expression of serious dissatisfaction with previous concerns was not resolved at school level and initially raised with the head teacher. |
Thank you for helping us keep the process positive and solution focused.
If you have a pastoral, teaching, learning or progress concern
Please contact the school and speak to the tutor. You can access this email address on the contacts page.
If you have a safeguarding concern
Please contact the schools safeguarding lead or use this form. You can also email the safeguarding lead at [email protected]
You have used the above approaches and wish to take the matter further, please now contact the Head of year or Subject to escalate the concern.
Head of Year
Y7 – Caitlin Searle – [email protected]
Y8 – Jodie Tompkins –
Y9 – Caitlin Cornwell –[email protected]
Y10 – Dan Chalmers – [email protected]
Y11 – Dan Chalmers – D[email protected]
Head of Department
If you have still not had an appropriate response please contact [email protected]
Please note that you are likely to reach a resolution faster by using the above stage first.
Submit a Complaint
After you have completed these stages, and you still wish to submit a formal complaint, please see the PDF below for information on this process and use this link to submit your complaint.
Complaints policy can be viewed here > Complaints Policy
Please see the extracts below from the policy with relation to timelines.
Complaint Process Timeline
There is an expectation that complaints would be resolved at school level and that mediation would take place to build trust in any breakdown in relationships between the complainant and the school. If the complaint escalates through the formal complaint stages set out in the Complaints Policy, the time span would range between 10 school days through to 80 school days.
