Student Governance

The student governance team oversees the University’s student-facing procedures. We have a trained team of experienced caseworkers and investigators on hand to advise students, explore complex cases, and ensure that resolutions are reached quickly and effectively.

The team is responsible for administering and advising on the following procedures:

Student complaints

Where something happens and you complain about it, we have a system in place that encourages swift, local resolution wherever possible. Where an investigation is required we also have a fast-track system in place that allows for issues to be dealt with as quickly as possible. All our complaint investigations are carried out by specialist complaint investigators.

Academic appeals

Academic appeals are for when you think something has gone wrong in the way you’ve been assessed e.g. the marking criteria hasn't been applied properly or there was bias in the marking. Investigations are carried out by trained academics who will have an understanding of the relevant subject matter.

Extenuating circumstances

If something unexpected happens (like illness or a family bereavement) and it affects your ability to submit coursework or attend an assessment, you can make a claim for extenuating circumstances. You can ask for an extension to your existing deadline or for a new attempt in the resit period.

Student disciplinary

If there are concerns that you may have committed misconduct (including academic misconduct like plagiarism or cheating in an exam; and general misconduct like violence or fraud), we may investigate under the Student Disciplinary Procedure. There are a range of penalties available in response to misconduct, but we will also ensure you are signposted to relevant support so that the conduct is not repeated.

Fitness to practise

Fitness to practise is about your suitability to go into your chosen profession and applies only to courses which are governed by Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies. Your course handbook will tell you if this is the case. If your behaviour potentially breaches the relevant professional code of conduct, we may investigate under this procedure.

Fitness to study

If it appears that you are experiencing health problems (such as mental health issues) that are preventing you from engaging effectively with your course, we may use the Fitness to Study procedure to look at whether we can put in place a tailored plan to support your continuation on the course, or whether you might need to take a temporary break from studying to get better.

Suspensions

In cases where we receive serious allegations, we have a robust suspensions system in place that allows senior staff to suspend a student from University premises for a set period of time, as a precautionary measure. We ensure that students are supported throughout any period of suspension.