Every district must have a complaint process. This is the Ministry’s Board-Level Student Appeal Guidelines. This is the law. These documents are a bit difficult to parse, so here’s a plain language gist:

In November 2022, the Ministry of Education published guidelines for school boards. These guidelines explain how boards should set up their appeal processes. The guidelines tell boards what to do, but they do not force boards to follow the rules. This means districts can create appeal policies that look good on paper but do not actually help families.

What decisions you can appeal

You can appeal any decision made by a school employee that significantly affects your child’s:

• education
• health
• safety

The law says districts should look at each appeal individually. They should not create lists ahead of time that say “you can only appeal these specific things.”

The law also says that when an employee does not make a decision, that counts as a decision. You can appeal when the district simply does not respond to you.

What must be in a district’s appeal bylaw

Every school board must create an appeal bylaw. This is a formal rule document. The bylaw must include:

Basic information

• Reference to Section 11 of the School Act
• Promise that the district will not punish families for filing appeals
• Explanation of what decisions can be appealed
• Explanation that not making a decision also counts as a decision

How to file an appeal

• What forms you need to fill out
• Who you send the forms to
• Contact information for staff who can help you
• Information about getting interpreters or other help you need

What happens after you file

• How long you have to file (and how to ask for more time)
• Confirmation that the board has 45 days to make a decision
• Explanation of who will review your appeal
• Details about the hearing process

The hearing

• Hearings are private (not public meetings)
• You have the right to speak and be heard
• You can bring someone to support you
• The person who made the original decision cannot be in the room when the board decides

After the hearing

• You will get a written decision within 1-2 days
• The decision must explain why the board decided what it did
• You will be told about other options if you disagree, like appealing to the Superintendent of Appeals

The 45-day timeline

The law says boards must make a decision within 45 days of receiving your appeal.

This sounds clear. But districts can delay when the 45 days starts by:

• Asking for more information
• Asking you to clarify your appeal
• Requiring proof that you tried to resolve the problem informally first

Districts say these steps happen before the appeal is officially “received.” So the 45 days has not started yet.

Even when districts follow the 45-day rule, they often give you the decision on day 44 or 45. This leaves you almost no time to decide what to do next.

Informal resolution before you can appeal

Many districts require you to try “informal resolution” before they will accept your appeal. This means:

• First, talk to the teacher
• Then, talk to the principal
• Then, talk to someone at the district office

This sounds reasonable. But problems happen:

• People do not respond to your emails
• Meetings get cancelled over and over
• Staff listen but do nothing
• Nothing gets written down
• Nothing changes

Then when you finally file an appeal, the district says you are “unwilling to collaborate” or “combative.”

Districts also control what counts as “trying hard enough.” They might say:

• One meeting is not enough
• You moved to a formal appeal too quickly
• You did not give them enough time to respond

There is no clear rule about what counts as sufficient informal resolution. The district decides.

The hearing

At a hearing:

• You can speak and present your case
• You can bring someone to help you
• The hearing is private
• The person who made the original decision should not be in the room

The written decision

After the hearing, the board must give you a written decision within 1-2 days. The decision must explain:

• What rules the district used
• What evidence they looked at
• Why they decided what they decided

Many written decisions:

• Are polite and professional
• Say they understand your concerns
• Say the district acted appropriately
• Uphold the original decision

What the guidelines say districts should do

The ministry says appeal processes should be:

• Accessible: Easy to find and understand. Information should be in plain language. You should be able to get interpreters and other help.
• Clear: You should understand what you can appeal, how the process works, and what might happen.
• Timely:The board should make decisions within 45 days, ideally faster.
• Impartial: The board should have an open mind. They should not decide before hearing from you.
• Free from discrimination: The process should work for everyone, regardless of race, language, disability, income, or familiarity with the school system.
• Non-adversarial: The process should be respectful and supportive, not like a courtroom battle.
• Protected from reprisal: The district should promise not to punish you for filing an appeal.

These principles sound good. But the guidelines cannot force districts to follow them. Knowing these requirements can help you push back if districts don’t follow the guidelines. Complaining to the Ministry or Ombudsperson that they are not following the rules don’t strike fear in districts.

Learn more about your district’s complaint process

K12 Complaints is currently working on posting the complain process for all 60 public school districts in British Columbia. Learn more