Complaints
The University has a procedure to address complaints by students about learning opportunities and other aspects of university life.
Please follow this link to the 'C1: Procedure for complaints' for the 2024/25 academic year. N.B. These Procedures are updated by the University on a regular basis. Please follow this link to the Academic and Student Regulations and Procedures webpage for the latest version.
Complaints procedure
Complaints made by students are dealt with locally in the first instance, either within a faculty, Department or School. Where a complaint is escalated to stage two, we will appoint a Complaint Handler and will arrange stage three panels (if required).
A student wishing to make a complaint should do so at the time, or as soon as possible after, they experience poor service or support. A complaint by a student after the passage of weeks or months, or at the end of their programme, is likely to be more difficult to pursue and resolve than one made near to the time the poor service or support was experienced.
Making an informal complaint
Although we try to ensure that you have a positive experience whilst at the University, situations may arise in which you feel dissatisfied with the service provided. In these situations, you may wish to make a complaint.
| Type of complaint | Procedure |
|---|---|
| Course-related | Discuss the issue with your School or Department and this will initially be dealt with in an informal manner. |
| Service-related | Discuss the matter with the person or persons providing the service i.e. University Student Lettings, security or the library. |
Making a formal complaint
In the event that you are still unhappy with the resolution provided by the School, Department or service area, or if the School, Department or service area does not respond, you should progress the complaint to the Office of Student Complaints, Appeals and Regulation. This will be treated as a formal written complaint.
To make a formal complaint, you should complete a relevant form:
Instructions on how to submit this are included in the individual forms.
Please see section 1 of the Procedure for Complaints for details on who is eligible to use the process and for the time limits that apply.
Investigating a formal complaint
A Complaint Handler will be assigned to deal with your complaint. Within 5 working days of receiving your complaint, the Complaint Handler will invite you to a meeting to explain the University’s procedure, explore your complaint and establish whether it is possible at that stage to provide a remedy.
If it is not possible to come to a remedy at the meeting, the Complaint Handler will investigate the complaint further and will normally communicate an outcome to you within 50 working days of receiving your formal written complaint.
Requesting a review
If you have received the outcome of your formal written complaint and are not satisfied with the outcome, you can request a review by emailing OSCAR. You must submit your request within 10 working days of receiving the outcome of your formal written complaint. The grounds for requesting a review are detailed in Regulation 55 of the University’s Procedure for complaints.
A Complaint Review Panel will be convened and you will normally receive a letter within 10 working days of submitting your request confirming that a Panel meeting will be taking place. You will not attend the meeting unless requested by the Complaint Review Panel. The outcomes that the Panel may come to are detailed in Regulation 67 of the University’s Procedure for complaints.