Jesters Kids Club Complaints Procedure

Jesters is committed to providing a safe, stimulating, consistent and accessible service to children and their parents/carers. We always aim to provide high quality services for everyone, but accept that sometimes things do not always go to plan. In such circumstances, we want to know so that we can put them right and learn from our mistakes.

This policy constitutes Jesters’s formal Complaints Procedure. It will be displayed on the premises at all times.

Under normal circumstances, the Team Leader will be responsible for managing complaints. If a complaint is made against the Team Leader, the Registered Person will conduct the investigation. All complaints made to staff will be recorded in detail in the Incident Record Book.

Stage One
If a parent/carer has a complaint about some aspect of Jester’s activity, or about the conduct of an individual member of staff, it will often be possible to resolve the problem by simply speaking to the individual concerned and/or to the Director. As outlined in the Partnership with Parents/Carers policy, Jesters is committed to open and regular dialogue with parents/carers and welcomes all comments on its services, regardless of whether they are positive or negative.

In the first instance, parents/carers are encouraged to speak directly to the relevant member of staff, if deemed appropriate. If not, the Team Leader should be approached and they will try to resolve the problem. If a satisfactory resolution cannot be found, then Stage Two of the procedure will formally come into operation.

Stage Two
If informal discussions of a complaint or problem have not produced a satisfactory resolution to the situation, parents/carers should put their complaint in detail and in writing to the Director. Relevant names, dates, evidence and any other important information on the nature of the complaint should be included.

Jesters will acknowledge receipt of the complaint as soon as possible – within three working days at least – and fully investigate the matter within 15 working days. If there is any delay, Jesters will advise the parent/carers of this and offer an explanation. The Manager will be responsible for sending them a full and formal response to the complaint.

If the Director has good reason to believe that the situation has child protection implications, they should inform the designated Child Protection Officer and ensure that the local social services department is contacted, according to the procedure set out in the Child Protection policy. If any party involved in the complaint has good reason to believe that a criminal offence has been committed, then they will contact the police.

The formal response to the complaint from the Club will be sent to the parent/carer concerned and copied to all relevant members of staff if appropriate. The response will include recommendations for dealing with the complaint and for any amendments to the Club’s policies or procedures emerging from the investigation.

The Director will arrange a time to meet the parent/carer concerned and any other relevant individuals, such as members of staff, to discuss the complaint and the Club’s response to it. The Director will judge if it is best for all parties to meet together or if individual meetings are more appropriate.

If at the conclusion of this process parents/carers remain dissatisfied with the response they have received, the original complaint along with Jester’s response will be passed to the Registered Person who will adjudicate the case.

The Registered Person will communicate a detailed response, including any actions to be taken, to both the Team Leader and the parents/carers concerned within 15 working days.

Making a Complaint to Ofsted
Any parent/carer can, at any time, submit a complaint to Ofsted about any aspect of registered childcare provision. Ofsted will consider and investigate all complaints received.

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Jesters Kids Clubs, Main Road, Bicknacre, Essex, 
Main Office Tel: 01245 222384