Complaints Procedure

How we deal with complaints at Canterbury Eagles

Occasionally, we might receive a complaint about the behaviour of a member of the club. We have developed a process for handling these, which we feel is fair, senstive and non-judgemental, while allowing us to respond clearly and promptly. The steps are outlined below:

  • The club receives a complaint from a member (parent or player), another club, League or Kent FA

  • Exec committee (Co-Chairs, Secretary, Vice Chair and Welfare Team)  look at the complaint to check its validity and assign investigator or investigation team “investigators” 

  • In most cases, this will be one of the Welfare officers but can be the Secretary or Club Development Officer if the Welfare team are unavailable due to work/holiday/other commitments

  • Any members implicated in the complaint will be notified by the investigators and will be temporarily suspended from all club activities while the investigation is carried out.

  • The investigators will speak to all parties involved as quickly as possible and will gather as much corroborating evidence from other witnesses  - they should use official club communications for this (club email not WhatsApp)

  • The investigators may also speak to other agencies for advice guidance and support including: Kent FA, Kent Police, KCC and local schools.  

  • The investigators will come to a judgement based on the balance of probability (as opposed to beyond a reasonable doubt) and decide on a course of action

  • The course of action should be appropriate and take into account the wellbeing of all parties and can range from 

    • support 

    • education 

    • mediation

    • restorative justice 

    • suspension

    • expulsion 

  • We will remember that the majority of our members are children and we owe them an opportunity to learn from their mistakes.     

  • Any members involved will be informed of the judgement by email and phone where possible.

  • Members may appeal to the Co-Chairs if they disagree with the judgement. The Co-chairs will meet within 5 days of appeal and reconsider the evidence and communicate their decision. 

  • The decision of the Co-chairs will be final.

  • In cases of serious misconduct where the welfare of volunteers or players or the reputation of the club is at significant risk, the executive committee reserves the right to remove members from the club with immediate effect.