Complaints Policy

Since 1992 WHG has prided itself on the quality of the pastoral care provided to its students and relationship with the parents, agents and our Host Families. Parents & agents are encouraged to be in close liaison with our staff about their children’s wellbeing irrespective of service level.

It is hoped that all can work together for the students’ benefit. If anyone has a complaint, they can expect it to be treated with care and in accordance with this Complaints Procedure.

Our complaints procedure is in three steps and we hope to find a resolution to any complaint at the earliest possible stage.

If someone has a complaint, they should first contact their Local Guardian to find a resolution. In most cases, issues can be resolved quickly, efficiently and to a satisfying conclusion.

If the complaint concerns a Local Guardian, contact the Development Manager at Head Office

• by email - [email protected]

If the complaint concerns a host family, contact the Host Family Department at Head Office

• by email - [email protected]

If the complaint concerns a member of staff, contact a partner at Head Office

• by email:    [email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

If you would like to discuss the matter by phone please call head office on +44 8 458 686 688

A written record of all complaints will be logged. If the complaint is not resolved in a satisfying manner on an informal basis, please consider step 2

If the complaint cannot be resolved on an informal basis, then the complaint should be put in writing by email to a WHG Partner on one of the above email addresses.

Complaints will normally only progress to Stage 2 after first being considered at the preliminary, informal, stage and only if the complainant wishes to escalate the matter to Stage 2. The Partner will decide, after considering the complaint, the appropriate course of action to take.

At this stage, the Partner may speak directly to the complainant at a mutually convenient time.

The Partner will investigate the complaint personally and impartially. Once all the facts have been established, the Partner will report findings and take action accordingly.

If the complaint is not satisfied with the conclusion of Step 2, they may consider the final Step, 3.

If a resolution or satisfying result has not been reached through Step 1 or 2, WHG will suggest making a formal complaint to AEGIS (Association for the Education and Guardianship of International Students), their contact details can be found here (http://aegisuk.net/contact-us).

AEGIS is an independent registered charity who give impartial support in an ongoing complaint that cannot be resolved directly with WHG. The complainant will need to give their account of the complaint, WHG will share the findings of the Partner and together with AEGIS find a resolution to satisfy all parties and close the matter.

All complaints received by WHG will be treated seriously and handled sensitively. We will acknowledge complaints as soon as reasonably practical, normally within five working days. Within that acknowledgement, we will set out how we intend to deal with the complaint and the timeframe within which parents can expect to hear further from us.

Following resolution of a complaint, Head Office will keep a written record of all formal complaints, whether they are resolved at the informal step or beyond.

Record keeping is useful for management purposes and to enable any patterns of concern to be monitored. Key information will be included as part of the complaint such as:

• Date when the issue was raised.
• Name of parent, student, host family or member of staff.
• Description of the issue.
• Records of all the investigations (if appropriate).
• Witness statements (if appropriate).
• Name of member(s) of staff handling the issue at each stage.
• Copies of all correspondence on the issue (including emails and records of phone conversations).

WHG is mindful of its obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998 (and from May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation) to keep such information for no longer than is necessary.

Policy Updated
8^thOctober 2022

Policy Review Date
1^stOctober 2023