NEWS 03
gairrhydd | NEWS@GAIRRHYDD.COM MONDAY MARCH 01 2010
Millions of pounds spent on complaints Legal costs and case settlement fees are revealed Jamie Thunder News Editor A gair rhydd investigation has found that Russell Group universities spent almost £1 million of public money on legal fees and settlements relating to student complaints between 2002 and 2009. The universities directly paid at least £638,635 on legal fees and nearly £250,000 in settlements over the period (£75,000 from Liverpool University was not broken down into those categories). The true amount is likely to be higher. One university (Leeds) simply did not respond to enquiries, despite repeated requests, and three others refused to provide the information, citing confidentiality or the cost of processing the details. Some also did not record legal fees in a way that showed how much was spent on particular types of cases. Only money paid directly by universities, not that paid on their behalf (for example by insurers), is included in the total. Institutions that refused to clarify who paid the money are not included in the total.
Cambridge only paid legal fees up to £10,000 for any single case, with the rest being paid by their insurers. More than a third of the total £964,000 was paid by the London School of Economics (LSE). It spent more than £275,000 on legal fees and £55,000 in settlements, more than the next highest two institutions combined. Cases relating to student complaints cost three universities over £100,000, and a further three over £50,000. Of the eight universities that provided the full information, the average amount spent over the period was £107,000 (without LSE it is £76,000). This is a small proportion of their income, and usually represents a few expensive cases. However, it is also money that could be spent elsewhere. On its website, the Russell Group says it ‘represents the 20 leading UK universities which are committed to maintaining ... an outstanding teaching and learning experience’. No-one from the body was available for comment. gair rhydd contacted the relevant universities for comment prior to publication, but none responded. Table omits some smaller amounts
What they spent... LSE Cardiff Newcastle
£331,750 £141,051 £117,308
UCL Imperial
£71,521.90
Liverpool
£75,004.84
Manchester
£44,800
Cambridge Sheffield
£42,600 £33,427
Glasgow
£12,731.20
£71,426
(settlements only)
(settlements only)
Election week coming closer It’s only one week until this year's Students' Union elections kick off, and this year could see more candidates than ever running for the eight sabbatical positions. Election week begins on March 8, with voting opening on March 10 and closing on Sunday 14. The entire student body has the opportunity to elect their preferred candidates in order to shape the way in which the Students’ Union is run, and the way students are represented in the forthcoming year. The elections are a vitally important time for students to have their voices heard. The Hustings event on Tuesday March 9 will be a chance for students to grill candidates over their policies and their plans for the year ahead. All students currently studying at Cardiff University can vote and are encouraged to engage in the election process and the manifestos of running candidates. During election week, voting will take place at cross-campus voting stands, and via the internet at cardiffstudents.com. For the first time, some student media positions will not be decided by the whole student body this year.
Welsh eating disorder charity launched beat Cymru encourages Assembly Members to increase support Julia Leonard Reporter beat Cymru, a Wales-based branch of the national eating disorder charity, ‘beat,’ was launched last week. The First Minister, Carwyn Jones, declared the charity officially open for business at an event at the building for the National Assembly for Wales, the Senedd, on Tuesday evening. The Chief Executive of beat, Susan Ringwood, and Bethan Jenkins AM, the Chair of the Cross Party Group for Eating Disorders, also attended. Beat Cymru is part of a five-year plan to improve support for the 56,000 people who suffer from anorexia nervosa, bulimia and other eating disorders in Wales. Twenty support groups have been set up, as well as a helpline and website. “We want to be the voice for people with eating disorders. We want to influence the policy makers as well as ensuring that better services are provided and be the charity that people come to in Wales,” said Project Manager Helen Miller. Until now, there has been a distinct lack of specialist services in Wales. There is currently one adolescent unit in Bridgend and an out-patient bulimia clinic in Cardiff, so sufferers who require in-patient treatment have to go
to clinics in England. The Health Minister, Edwina Hart, has recently allocated £1million of Assembly Government funding to set up community services over the next three years. Beat Cymru plans to train frontline health workers to identify the symptoms. Two clinical network teams are currently being set up, one in north Wales and one in south Wales. Diagnosing the disorder has been problematic due to lack of awareness. One mother, who wishes to remain anonymous, has first-hand experience of this, because her daughter had anorexia for thirteen years. “I was amazed to see quite a senior hospital doctor ask my daughter if she was planning to become a model. I can’t believe that somebody who’s well trained in a hospital could think that,” she said. Beat also hopes to ‘anti-stigmatise’ the condition. Recent research shows that one in five people in Wales do not believe that eating disorders are a serious mental health problem. In reality, they have the highest mortality rate of people with a psychiatric condition. “People die of eating disorders,” said Helen Miller. “They can be beaten but they're a serious problem and this is the message we need to get out there to everybody.” For more information, visit www.beat.co.uk/beatCymru.
BEAT CYMRU: Here to help people in Wales with eating disorders