This Theme鈥痵ets out the guiding principles which underpin concerns, complaints and appeals handling, offering practical advice and useful resources to help providers operate effective systems. It explains how the processes for someone to raise their dissatisfaction, promotes equality of opportunity and the rights of all students to benefit from a high-quality academic experience, and to access the support they need to succeed.
Expectations and Practices for Concerns, Complaints and Appeals
Expectations
Expectations for quality
Courses are well-designed, provide a high-quality academic experience for all students and enable a student鈥檚 achievement to be reliably assessed.
From admission through to completion, all students are provided with the support that they need to succeed in and benefit from higher education.
Practices
Core practice for quality
The provider has fair and transparent procedures for handling complaints and appeals which are accessible to all students.
Common practice for quality
The provider reviews its core practices for quality regularly and uses the outcomes to drive improvement and enhancement.
Guiding Principles
- Concerns, complaints and appeals are used to improve the student experience.
- Concerns, complaints and appeals procedures are accessible and inclusive.
- Information is clear and transparent.
- People raising concerns or making complaints or appeals are treated with dignity and respect, and their well-being is properly considered.
- Concerns, complaints and appeals processes are proportionate and allow for cases to be resolved as early as possible.
- Concerns, complaints and appeals procedures are fair and impartial.
- Confidentiality and anonymity are appropriately assured.
- Concerns, complaints and appeals are resolved in as timely a way as possible.
- , Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA)
- , Office of the Independent Adjudicators (OIA)
- , Office of the Independent Adjudicators (OIA)
- , Office of the Independent Adjudicators (OIA)
- , Information Commissioner's Office (2022)
- , GOV.UK
- , GOV.UK
- , GOV.UK
- , GOV.UK
- , GOV.UK
- , GOV.UK
- , Office for Students (OfS)
- , Universities UK (UUK)
- , GOV.UK
- , Advance HE
- , Office of the Independent Adjudicators (OIA)
- , Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (2011)