Student complaints

A complaint can be submitted about:

• The quality and standard of service provided by the university, including teaching and learning provision
• Failure to provide a service as advertised or reasonably expected
• Unsuitable facilities or learning resources
• Failure of the university to follow an appropriate administrative or academic process

The university has other processes and procedures for dealing with academic appeals, challenging an admissions decision and complaints relating to student or staff behaviour. Student misconduct is considered under the university Disciplinary Code and is investigated by the University Investigations Team based in Security. Reports about staff misconduct are managed through the Dignity and Respect Policy by HR. All reports can be made directly to security@dmu.ac.uk, who will manage and forward the casework appropriately.

Please be assured that by making a report you will not be disadvantaged by the university.

In the first instance you should submit an early resolution complaint form and your case will be managed locally by the faculty or most appropriate university department. This form must be submitted within three months of the matter becoming apparent.

The early resolution complaint form can only be submitted via your student or alumni email account.

The early resolution form will be sent to an Early Resolution Officer who will decide how best to try and reach an outcome for your complaint. This may involve asking you for more information, having a conversation with you to understand the specific issues, investigating the issues raised with other staff or recommending mediation between all parties.

Once your complaint has been investigated you will receive an outcome in writing.

These are the possible outcomes:

• Upheld: An outcome or remedy will be offered to you
• Dismissed: There is no evidence of wrongdoing and your complaint cannot be taken any further
• Partially upheld: If your complaint concerns multiple elements, some of these may be upheld and other dismissed

You may escalate your complaint to the formal complaint stage if you have grounds to do so, and if the early resolution stage has been completed. The only grounds for escalation are:

• The complaint procedure was not followed correctly
• New information that was not available earlier in the process, can now be provided by the student, with good reason as to why it could not be produced earlier

Once you have completed the formal complaint form, it will be reviewed by the complaints team. If your complaint is eligible for further investigation, it will be allocated to a member of staff who has had no previous involvement in the matter. This staff member may contact you, as well as other staff and students, and will consider documents and other relevant evidence. Once they have completed their investigation, they will write to you explaining the reasons for the outcome, providing evidence used in the decision-making process and any other recommendations.

Once you have received an outcome at the formal complaint stage, you may request a review of your complaint if you have grounds to do so, as below:

• The complaint procedure was not followed correctly
• New information that was not available earlier in the process, can now be provided by the student, with good reason as to why it could not be produced earlier

You must complete the review request form and your complaint will be reviewed by the Chair of the University Complaints Committee who may recommend that the case be heard at a full panel hearing, or decline the request for review if the grounds for appeal (as above) are not justified.

The decision of the Chair is final and not subject to review by any other university body.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of a complaint but do not have grounds to escalate it, you may be able to apply for a review of your complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) providing that the case you take to the OIA is eligible under its rules. Should you decide to make a complaint to the OIA, you must request a Completion of Procedures letter from the university and you have one month from the date of your complaint outcome letter to do this. You should request the Completion of Procedures letter from the Academic Support Office by email.

The OIA is a review body. It will consider how the university has dealt with your case and its final decision. The focus of the review will be what happened before the Completion of Procedures Letter was issued. The OIA Scheme is not a further appeal to university. The OIA provides an independent review Scheme and its role is principally to consider whether the university has correctly applied its regulations and followed its procedures, and whether the outcome is reasonable in the circumstances.

Complaints about student or staff behaviour or misconduct will be referred to as a "report". The university has separate procedures for dealing with reports of student or staff misconduct.

Student misconduct is considered under the University Disciplinary Code and is investigated by the University Investigations Team based in Security. Reports about staff misconduct are managed through the Dignity and Respect Policy by HR. All reports can be made directly to security@dmu.ac.uk, who will manage and forward the casework appropriately.

If you wish to make a disclosure and not a report please see below.

Please be assured that by making a report, you will not be disadvantaged by the university.

What is the difference between a report and a disclosure?

A report is an official statement about an event that will require further investigation.

A disclosure is the opportunity to share your experience and receive support; it does not mean you have to make a report.

You may prefer to disclose your experience to the No Space For Hate Project (for incidents concerning hate and harassment) or the Mandala Project (for incidents concerning sexual or domestic violence or abuse). You do not have to make a report in order to receive support.

You may also disclose incidences of hate and harassment anonymously using our anonymous reporting form. Please note that anonymous reports cannot be investigated.

The university expects students to engage with the complaints process themselves. If you need support, please contact the Students’ Union advice team. The university does not accept complaints from third parties unless there are exceptional reasons for doing so.

The university is committed to providing an excellent educational experience for students, and we know that sometimes you will need to raise a concern or get further support. There are many ways for you to seek help in resolving problems:

• Healthy DMU
• Our Wellbeing team
• Your personal tutor
• Your programme team
• Your Course Representative
• Your faculty Student Advice Centre
• DSU Advice and Wellbeing