Policies

Appropriate Communication and Complaints Channels

Communication

We make every effort to ensure that you are kept fully informed of events at school. Our main methods of communication are:

• The School App
• The fortnightly school newsletter
• Our school Facebook page
• The school website
• Emails

Concerns and Complaints

Despite our best efforts, there may be times when you feel that you need to register a complaint. To avoid unnecessary upset or misunderstandings please ensure that if you have an issue or concern, you talk to us early so we can resolve it quickly. A lot of unnecessary problems can be avoided when communication is open and honest.

To know more about the Concerns and Complaints Policy click here.

Raising Concerns and Complaints:

At Birkdale Intermediate, anyone who wants to raise a concern or complaint should follow this procedure. For an overview, see Concerns and Complaints Process .

• Concerns or complaints should be raised with the school in the first instance. Serious matters may also be raised with external agencies directly (e.g. police, Oranga Tamariki).
• If a member of the school community has a concern or complaint about a student who is not their child, they should contact the school. They should not contact the student or their parents/caregivers directly.
• Anyone with a concern or complaint may seek advice or support (e.g. a friend, relative, lawyer, union, employee assistance programme, counselling or mediation services). A support person and/or a representative may help raise a concern or make a complaint and may attend arranged meetings. A support person and/or representative is expected to respect privacy and confidentiality, as with other people involved in the process.
• We expect all concerns and complaints to be raised in a respectful way, in accordance with our conduct expectations and inclusive school culture. The school will assess and respond to all concerns and complaints in a timely, fair, and respectful manner.
• Concerns and complaints should be raised as soon as possible to allow the school to respond effectively. There is no time limit on when a concern or complaint may be raised with the school. A concern or complaint relating to an historic event may require a more complex investigation and response. This includes historic sensitive claims.

Please click here to know more about Guidelines for raising concerns.