Complaints to the University Information for Undergraduate and Postgraduate students (Home & International students). This leaflet should be read in conjunction with the Reading University Complaints Procedure (http://www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/stdserv/Student-Complaints-Procedure-RV2015.pdf)
What is an Academic Complaint?
Students can put in a complaint to the Unviersity relating to: • the delivery of teaching; • support services; • administration; • facilities; • other aspects of the student’s relationship with the University. If the matter you wisht to complain about falls outside of these, then it may not fall into the scope of the University Complaints procedure: speak to an Adviser if you are unclear as to whether this procedure applies to the matter you wish to complain about. There are usually three stages to the Complaint procedure. Unless there is good reason for doing so, a student may not progress their complaint to a higher stage unless all lower stages have been completed. Things to be aware of… •
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Any student who makes a complaint in good faith should not be adversely affected by the fact of the complaint, and there will be no impact on your academic career, whether or not the complaint is upheld. A complaint will normally only be accepted for consideration if it is made within six months of the relevant issue occurring, unless there has been good reason for delay. The complaint will be kept confidential. However, details of a complaint may be discussed with relevant staff members to enable a full investigation to be carried out. Generally, it’s in the best interest of both the student and the University to resolve a complaint at the least formal and lowest stage possible. In any interview regarding the complaint, you may be accompanied by a ‘friend’ who, should be a registered student, a member of Academic Staff of the University, a RUSU Student Officer, or a member of the RUSU Advice Service team. A complaint made anonymously will only be considered under exceptional circumstances. Disputes regarding matters of academic judgement will not be considered.
Stage ‘0’ complaint This is an informal complaint raised directly with the relevant staff in the school or service, either verbally or via email. The Advice Service would always encourage students to submit their stage 0 complaints via email so there is a written log of the complaint being submitted. Be Specific: Within the complaint, you should try to be as specific and detailed as possible within the complaint.
Reading University Students’ Union PO Box 230, Whiteknights, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6AZ 0118 378 4100 | advice@rusu.co.uk | www.rusu.co.uk
Timeline: It can often help to create a time line of events, this will ensure all your points are laid out clearly and in a succident manner. Evidence: ensure you submit any relevant evidence (e.g. Emails, policies, medical evidence, supporting statements) Outcome: Be clear and informed about the outcome you are seeking from the complaint If you’re unsure about who to submit the complaint to within the University a RUSU Adviser can offer you guidance on the best person to contact. Alternatively contact the relevant School or Faculty Office, the Doctoral Research Office (for PGR students) or the Student Services Help Desk in Carrington (Tel: 0118 378 5555; or log a call through the RISIS web portal) for advice. Response: sometimes the complaint might be able to be resolved straight away, and the member of staff should always respond to your complaint via email, even if you raise the complaint verbally. An acknowledgement of the complaint should be sent within 3 working dates, indicating the likely timescale for a full response to be received if some further investigation is required.
Stage ‘1’ complaint Hopefully your complaint can be resolved at stage 0 and you will not need to move on to stage 1, which is a formal complaint. However, if you remain unsatisfied with the complaint response you receive at stage 0 you can escalate the complaint to stage 1. To do this, you will need to complete a stage 1 complaint form: www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/qualitysupport/Complaint_Form_- _Stage_1.docx You should submit the complaint to the person responsible for the area, for example the Head of School or Head of the relevant student service. If you are unsure of who to submit the complaint to, you can seek advice from the RUSU advice service. Within the complaint form you’ll need to add in the following information: • • • • •
Your name, address, contact number, University email address, student number and programme of study; The nature of your complaint (following the same guidance in stage 0); Any relevant evidence; An explanation of how you have tried to resolve the complaint at stage 0 and why you remain unsatisfied with the complaint response; Finally, you should detail the outcome of the complaint you are seeking.
Your complaint should be acknowledged within 3 working days (as long as the relevant member of staff is available). The person who is authorised to consider a complaint at stage 1 will investigate the issue raised in the complaint. A full response will be sent within four working weeks of submission of the stage 1 complaint, unless a complex or prolonged investigation is required, in which case you will be kept informed of the likely timescales. If the staff member investigating the complaint upholds the complaint and recommends that the University should issue a remedy, the staff member investigating the complaint should receive approval from the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning). You should receive a Stage 1 outcome letter and a copy of the complete investigation report. The Stage 1 outcome letter should include: the procedure(s) followed, the conclusions, a recommendation to resolve the complaint where appropriate.
Reading University Students’ Union PO Box 230, Whiteknights, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6AZ 0118 378 4100 | advice@rusu.co.uk | www.rusu.co.uk
Stage ‘2’ complaint If you remain unsatisfied with the complaint outcome at stage ‘1’ you can ask for a review of the complaint to be carried out by the Appeals and Complaints Officer within the University. You will need to escalate your complaint to stage 2 within 3 months of receiving the stage 1 response. If you would like to escalate your complaint to stage 2 you will need to complete the stage 2 form http://www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/stdserv/Complaint-Form-Stage-2.pdf Your complaint form should include: • • • • • •
Your name, address, contact number, University email address, student number and programme of study; The nature of your complaint (following the guidance around the stage 0 complaint); Any supporting evidence for your complaint; Steps taken at stage 0 and 1 to resolve the complaint; A statement of why you remain unsatisfied with the complaint; Details of the outcome you are seeking from the complaint.
Be aware that stage 2 cannot usually review points which were not raised in your original 1 complaint, unless there is good reason as to why it was not raised earlier. This is because stage 2 is the process of reviewing whether the complaint was dealt with correctly, it is not the role of stage 2 to respond to new complaint information. The University Secretary (or their nominee) will review the complaint to determine: • • • •
Whether the stage 1 outcome was reasonable; Whether the relevant procedures were followed; Consider any new information which the student was unable to provide for valid reasons earlier in the process; Consult the appropriate members of staff to determine a suitable resolution for the complaint.
A full response will normally be sent within six working weeks of submission of the Stage 2 complaint, unless delay is unavoidable, in which case the complainant will be kept informed of the likely timescale.
What happens next? If you have exhausted the University Complaints Procedure but are still unsatisfied with the outcome, then you may choose to take your complain to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA). The Advice Service can assist with this if you feel that it is a route which you want to take. The OIA can review complaints and the way which the University have handled a complaint. Further information about the OIA can be found on their website: www.oiahe.org.uk
Reading University Students’ Union PO Box 230, Whiteknights, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6AZ 0118 378 4100 | advice@rusu.co.uk | www.rusu.co.uk
How can RUSU help with you within the Complaints process? The RUSU Advice service can help you throughout the complaints process, at each stage of the complaint we can offer you guidance and support. We can; • • • • •
Offer guidance on the complaints process; Help students draft their complaints and offer feedback on what to include in the complaint or how to strengthen the complaint; Guide students through the complaint forms; Accompany students to any meetings regarding their complaint; Offer advice on potential complaint outcomes.
How to get in touch with the Advice Service You can contact the advice service via email: advice@rusu.ac.uk or call us on 0118 378 4100. We can offer feedback via email, or over the phone and can also book you in for an appointment. In addition to this we offer drop-in sessions to students: 11.00am – 1.30pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 14.00pm - 16.30pm Wednesday
Produced (August 2015)
Reading University Students’ Union PO Box 230, Whiteknights, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6AZ 0118 378 4100 | advice@rusu.co.uk | www.rusu.co.uk