21 days from the date the University published your ratified marks (confirmed by the Examination Board). If you are unsure, you can check with your School Office. If you decide to ask for a results review, your deadline to submit an Academic Appeal is 21 days after the outcome of this review.

Meet with your course leader or personal tutor. You can seek clarification of your results and discuss any concerns before you decide whether to submit a Stage 1 Formal Academic Appeal. Use the meeting to discuss any feedback you’ve already received or chase up your missing assessment feedback. Before submitting a formal Appeal, you should fully understand the marks you have been given. Remember that meetings with your tutor or course leader are not part of the Appeals process. Be careful not to miss the deadline for your Appeal.

A Results Review is optional and separate from the Appeals process. A Results Review allows you to discuss your concerns about your assessment(s), particularly where you feel your marks have been incorrectly recorded. If there may have been an administrative error in recording your marks, it is best to have a Results Review before submitting a full Academic Appeal. To organise a Results Review, contact your School Office. You have 14 calendar days from receipt of your ratified results to do this. Your School Office will forward your email to the appropriate contact within five working days. Your course leader will consider your case and make a recommendation to the Chair of the Examination Board. Once the Chair of the Examination Board has confirmed the outcome, your School Office will update you. Let your school office know if you want us to be copied on these emails. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your Results Review, you have 21 calendar days to submit a formal Stage 1 Academic Appeal. 

You can challenge the decision of an Examination Board because: “there has been a significant administrative error or omission in the assessment process which has had a detrimental effect on the student’s outcome”. So, there must either be an error or omission in the assessment process, or a decision made by the Examination Board.

Generally, there needs to be a mistake (error or omission) relating to your assessment or the assessment process which had a detrimental effect on your mark. Examples might include:

• You were provided with the wrong exam timetable.
• You were given the wrong examination paper to answer during your assessment, and the error was not corrected until later, so you missed out on examination time.
• The equipment provided in the assessment was faulty.
• University systems crashed, and you could not submit your work.
• You were assessed on something not mentioned in the Learning Outcomes of the module specifications.

Administrative errors or omissions are those caused by the University that affect the assessment or the mark. Issues to do with tuition, supervision or support are not considered under the Appeals procedure. You may wish to make a complaint instead. You must demonstrate with evidence how you meet the grounds of appeal. This means you must provide evidence to show a problem has occurred.

I’m not sure if there has been an error or omission, but I don’t agree with my result. What can I do?

You cannot appeal your grades just because you believe you should have got a better mark. This is called challenging ‘academic judgement’ and doesn’t constitute a ground for appeal. In the view to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Students in Higher Education (OIA), academic judgment is a judgment that is made about a matter where only the opinion of an academic expert will suffice. The marking, assessing, and grading of a piece of work is an academic judgment, and as such it is not possible for you to make an appeal against this judgment on the grounds that you simply disagree with it.

I experienced problems with feedback/ teaching/ supervision, or other issues unrelated to the assessment itself that affected my grade. What can I do?

The appeals process cannot be used to raise these issues and you may wish to make a complaint. Find out more about the  University’s complaints procedure here and read  our guidance here. If you experienced personal circumstances that affected your assessment you may wish to submit a request for Additional Consideration.

The evidence will depend on your specific case, but may include:

• Any correspondence from the University (i.e. Exam Board notification showing the date it was sent to the school, communication from the school regarding a Results Review if one has taken place, etc.).
• Official summary of support needs.
• Notification of grade.
• Anything that shows you have grounds to appeal.

If you are still awaiting evidence and cannot provide this within the deadline of 21 calendar days, you should submit your appeal form together with a rationale explaining why you have not been able to submit on time and a note explaining what further evidence is awaited and when it will be received. You have a maximum of 14 calendar days to submit this evidence.

You will receive an acknowledgement within 2 working days. If your form contains all the required information, you will receive a decision on whether your appeal has been ‘upheld’ (successful), or ‘not upheld’ (rejected) within 5 working days. If your appeal has been ‘upheld’ the Exam Board will reconsider its decision about your results, progression or award. Sometimes, more complex Stage 1 appeals may be referred to a full Academic Appeal panel. This may increase the amount of time you have to wait for an outcome. If your appeal has been ‘not upheld’, you may wish to move to Stage 2 of the appeals process.

If your Stage 1 Appeal has not been upheld, you can submit a Stage 2 appeal. This will be explained in your Stage 1 outcome letter. Read the Appeals regulations and get our advice to see if you have grounds to request a Stage 2 ‘Review of Appeal Decision’.  Download the Stage 2 Appeal Form and ensure you read  the accompanying guidance.  Click here for more information from the university.

You can appeal academic misconduct, fitness to practice, and disciplinary allegations, as well as additional consideration outcomes. However, you must have grounds to appeal these, and you must do so within the designated time frame. Please see the designated sections of our advice pages for more information on these.

It can be difficult to understand all the rules, especially if you’re new to higher education or the UK education system.

If you are ever unsure, ask a university staff member such as your Personal Tutor or Course Leader.

You can check your similarity report on Turnitin before the deadline. This is a good way to avoid making mistakes relating to poor paraphrasing or referencing issues. It is a good idea to leave some time before the deadline to upload your work and check this so you can make any changed if necessary.

There is no such thing as a ‘good’ similarity report, but look out for things like a high similarity to one source, blocks of highlighted text or an overall high similarity.

You can also seek support from  Library services, such as with referencing and essay writing.

If you are accused of Academic Misconduct, this means that the University suspects that there may have been poor academic practice or academic misconduct in a piece of your work.

At Brighton, there are two types of meetings to investigate allegations of Academic Misconduct: an Academic Practice Review (APR) and an Academic Misconduct Panel (AMP).

If you have been accused of Academic Misconduct, you will be invited to one of these meetings, usually by receiving a letter or email telling you which kind of meeting you have been invited to, when and where this will take place. You should receive this at least 5 working days before the meeting is due to take place. You should also be provided with evidence of the allegation, such as a Turnitin report.

We advise getting in touch if you receive an invitation to a meeting.  You can find out how to access the service on this page.  We advise sending us a copy of your invitation letter and all attachments to us when you have received it as soon as you can. This will help us to know more about your situation and tailor our advice to you.

Your invitation email should include some evidence of the allegation, such as your piece of work with the Turnitin report attached. We advise spending some time familiarising yourself with the piece of work in question and why you may have been accused. You should also receive an Academic Misconduct Report, which gives some insight into the allegation. If you do not receive this, then let us know, and we can request it for you.

Ahead of the scheduled meeting with your School, you can prepare a personal statement addressed to the panel. Whilst this is not compulsory, it is a good way to explain what has happened, what has potentially led to the allegation and whether you have any additional circumstances that have impacted on you. You can share this with the panel prior to the meeting. If you are feeling worried or concerned about being able to speak clearly or cover everything you wish to convey in the meeting, then this is a good option for you. You can send your statement to us to read over if you would like some advice or guidance on what to include, and then you can email it to the person who first invited you to the meeting.

Typically, this meeting is for students facing their first charge of misconduct and in their first year of study at the University. An APR relates to allegations of poor practice, such as a lack of understanding of academic protocols and referencing.

Your Head of School (or a nominee) will meet with you to ensure that appropriate guidance is given on how to avoid the problem in the future. You will normally be given a copy of or allowed to view any work or evidence to be considered at the meeting.

The possible outcomes of an Academic Practice Review are:

• The allegation is dismissed, and there is no further action taken; no record is placed in your file.
• The allegation is upheld. This can mean:
• Your work will receive a mark based on the valid parts of your work.
• The allegation will remain in your file for the rest of your course and will be taken into consideration if there are any future allegations.
• The allegation is referred to an Academic Misconduct Panel.

An AMP is for more serious allegations, and in most instances, students will not be new to higher education. This meeting will normally be attended by a panel of three academic staff (Chair of the meeting and two panel members who have not taught you). The staff member who raised the allegation will also be there to present their concerns to the panel. Typically, a member of staff will also be there to take minutes.

During the meeting, the marker will present their concerns and outline the facts and evidence that have led them to make the allegation. You will then be able to present your response; you can also read out any statement you have prepared if you have not sent it before the meeting. The panel will also ask you some questions about the allegation to get a better understanding of what may have happened.

The outcome will be given to you either after the panel has made a decision in the meeting or by email. The possible outcomes of an AMP are:

• The allegation is dismissed, and no further action is taken.
• The allegation is upheld, and a penalty will be applied. Penalties can be:
• Your work will receive a mark based on the merits of the non-plagiarised parts of your work. You are awarded a mark of zero for the piece of work in question, and either your work will be referred (i.e. failed and no cap placed on any further submission) or deferred (i.e. failed and a cap placed on any further submission).
• You have failed the module. The implications vary depending on the module. Check your course handbook for more information.
• No opportunity to resubmit. In some cases, this could affect your progression for the award you are eligible to receive.
• In extreme cases, the denial of an award. You will not receive any qualification from the University.

You can appeal against the decision of an Academic Misconduct Panel (AMP), but only on these grounds:

• There is new evidence that you were unable to share before.
• The facts laid out in your panel did not warrant the outcome that there was academic misconduct.
• The penalty you received was unreasonable or too harsh.

You have 10 working days from the date you received your AMP outcome to appeal. You can do this by writing to the Registrar and Secretary ( [email protected]) and explaining what grounds you have.

If your appeal is upheld, then you will be given a fresh panel and another opportunity to present your case.

You can use our  advice videos to make a request for Academic Consideration can:

• Explain the process
• Advise if your situation may be considered for Additional Consideration (or fall under another procedure)
• Advice on how to complete the form
• Provide feedback on your form
• Advice on the evidence required
• Provide advice throughout the process.

You can contact us for support on Additional Consideration process here or contact your Student Support & Guidance Tutor (SSGT)

This depends on which type you wish to apply for. The two routes are listed above, and once you have decided, read the guidance below.

No, requests must be made after the assessment has taken place.

Self-certification requests must be submitted within 7 calendar days of the date of the last affected assessment (all missed assessments in the 7-day period can be included on the same request).

Full applications should be submitted as soon as possible after the date of the affected assessments, but no later than 14 calendar days after the last affected assessment and 7-days for BSMS students. 

You can read more about Additional Consideration on the  University website, including the full University guidance and FAQs. The policy governing Additional Considerations is called   ‘GEAR Section B5’ which you can read on page 25 here .

You must submit your request within seven calendar days of the last affected assessment date (all missed assessments during this period can be included in the request).

If you have missed this deadline, then you will need to make a full application instead.

You can self-certify if you have experienced extraordinary circumstances that have caused you to be absent from a time-bound assessment/s for a period of up to and including 7 calendar days. You should  use the online form to request self-certification.

Examples of time-bound assessments are at the top of this page. Circumstances may include:

• A short-term infectious illness
• Acute worsening of a long-term condition
• Those that have a significant impact but do not necessarily require medical intervention.

If you were affected by your circumstances for longer than seven calendar days, you need to make a full application instead.

Only one self-certification request can be made per semester. If you need to claim again, you should make a full application.

You need to  complete the online Self-Referral form. 

This must be sent to  [email protected]. 

Remember, you can only self-certify for up to seven calendar days, including weekends.

Check the information above. Any claim that doesn’t fit the criteria for self-certification can be submitted as a full application.

Full applications should be submitted as soon as possible after the date of the last affected assessment, but no later than fourteen calendar days after. BSMS students should submit no later than seven days after the last affected assessment. 

Your circumstances should be unforeseeable, unavoidable, and have had a serious impact on your ability to submit assessments, study generally, or do well in your assessments.

Here are a few examples listed in the Additional Consideration policy:

• Serious personal illness
• Serious personal accident or injury
• Evidence of a long-term health condition worsening
• Death or serious illness of a family member or close friend
• Unforeseen and unavoidable caring responsibilities for a dependent
• Significant adverse personal or family circumstance or psychological problem.

You do not need evidence for Self-Certification applications.

For Full applications, your evidence or documentation should be from a professional source (e.g. GP, counsellor, University Support Services, Student Support and Guidance Tutor).

• It should be dated
• Should provide some kind of description of what you have experienced.
• The symptoms or problems that have impaired your performance
• How long you experienced the situation for (this should cover the time period of the assessment/s affected).

A letter that is months or years old won’t convince the University that your problems are affecting you now. Get new, recent evidence that clearly states that you’ve been affected during the assessment date in question.

Generally, a lack of evidence will only be accepted where it is not possible to obtain supporting documents, not where you have simply not obtained them despite the documents being accessible.

You should try to submit your evidence at the same time as your form, but if this is not possible, you must submit the form on time, even without evidence. You can submit evidence later, so long as you explain this on your form. You are expected to provide evidence within 14 days of submitting your application.

The University recognises that it may be insensitive to ask for a copy of the deceased person’s death certificate.

It may be difficult for you to get a copy, or to get it translated. Where supporting evidence of bereavement is required, the University will consider evidence from other sources such as an order of service from the person’s funeral, an obituary or news report, or letter from a GP, counsellor or personal tutor.

In some cases, the fact of the death may be enough for the University to accept your request for Additional Consideration. For instance, if a close family member dies shortly before exams, the University may accept that this will have had an impact on you without asking you to provide evidence. However, if you are asking for Additional Consideration because of a bereavement that happened some time ago, it would be best to provide evidence of the ongoing impact of the bereavement (such as from your GP or a counsellor).

There are time scales to be aware of:

• Current Student – as soon as you become aware of an issue and within 30 calendar days of the issue or concern arising.
• Former Student – within 60 calendar days of withdrawal or the last day of attendance (whichever is the sooner). (Go straight to STAGE 2 – see below).

This BSU guidance is here to help you navigate the Complaints process.

BSU Support is here to provide you with information to help you make an informed decision about the best way to resolve your concerns. We can also support you through the complaint procedure, helping you understand the various steps and accompanying you to meetings. We can also advise you on gathering the right evidence to support your case.

Please remember to book appointments with a BSU advisor well before any deadlines. We advise many students, and if you leave it until the last minute, we might not have the availability to see you.

You can complain about anything that affects your university experience, but NOT related to Exam Board decisions regarding academic progression or an award (that’s the Academic Appeals process).

If your issue relates to any of the following, then you might have grounds to raise a Complaint:

• Failure by the University to provide a satisfactory service.
• The quality of facilities or learning resources.
• Misleading or incorrect information in prospectuses or promotional material and other information provided by the University.
• Concerns about the delivery of a programme, teaching or administration, including, where applicable, that provided by a partner college.
• Poor quality of facilities, learning resources or services provided directly by the University.
• Complaints involving other organisations or contractors providing a service on behalf of the University

The University has a clear 3 stage  Student Complaints Procedure to address informal and formal concerns or complaints. In brief this consists of:

• Stage 1 Early Resolution
• Stage 2 Formal Stage
• Stage 3 Review Stage

There are three stages to the Procedure. If you’re a current student, you’re expected to attempt each one in turn. If you’re within 60 calendar days of withdrawal or your last day of attendance, you can skip stage 1 and start your complaint at stage 2.

It is hoped that most concerns can be resolved informally within your School. In most cases, this approach provides a quick solution and avoids the formality of submitting a written complaint. You are encouraged to raise issues with your School Complaints Officer – the person nominated to listen to your concerns and help find a resolution. To do this, you will need to contact your School Operations Manager. They can advise whom you need to send your complaint to. Sometimes, the School Operations Manager will say to send your Stage 1 to them. This is ok. They will send it on to the appropriate person to ensure no conflict of interest.

When you are preparing your Stage 1, it’s important to be as specific as possible about what your concerns are and to think about what might help to put the problem right. You can send them an email or ask to meet in person. You should contact them to let them know that what you are discussing is an early resolution to your complaint. We recommend you email your concerns or write them in a word-processed document to attach to an email.

Tips on what to write:

• You need to be as clear as possible, as the person who reads your complaint will know nothing about your circumstances. Once you have written your complaint, you need to read it back and consider whether someone with no prior knowledge of your complaint would understand what you have written.
• Writing a chronology of events may be helpful. Be as specific as you can with the dates that the events occurred.
• Be as concise but as informative as possible.
• Give examples to support the points you raise and include evidence where possible.
• If you are complaining about a specific person, you should include their name otherwise your complaint cannot be followed up. You should include information such as the person’s name or job title (if it’s a member of staff) their course (if it is another student).
• Only mention witnesses and people who support your complaint by name if they have given you permission to do so.
• You do not need to write your statement like an essay. It is fine to write it as a list of bullet points.
• Be honest and precise. Any complaint considered “frivolous or vexatious” will be rejected by the University Complaints Team.

The School Complaints Officer will make every attempt to find a resolution, and you will be notified in writing of the outcome. If you are unhappy with the outcome of the ‘early resolution’, you can take your complaint to the next level, Stage 2 (Formal Complaint) within, 14 days of notification of the outcome of your Stage 1.

If you are not satisfied with the response to the early resolution stage or the matter is too serious to be dealt with informally, you can submit a Stage 2 complaint using a  Stage 2 form. Copies of the form are available electronically from My Studies or the  Student Contract webpage.

DEADLINE – Stage 2 must be submitted within 14 days of your Stage 1 outcome email.

There is no need to repeat what you have said at Stage 1, but you could elaborate on it and refer to it, stating:

1. Why are you unhappy with the Stage 1 outcome
2. Additional supporting evidence (i.e., emails, messages, proof)
3. What actions have you taken to try to resolve the complaint (i.e. Stage 1 completed)
4. The outcome/resolution that you are seeking (i.e., what do you want to happen).

You need to send the form, with as much evidence as you can, to the University’s complaint email address:  [email protected].

You should receive a confirmation email acknowledging receipt of your complaint form.

A complaint investigator with no prior knowledge of your complaint will be appointed. They will then keep you informed about the progress of their investigation and may call you in for a meeting.

Contact the Brighton SU Support team if you would like someone to help you get ready for the meeting.

Once their investigation is complete, they will write an outcome letter and email it to you. Their recommendation will be whether to ‘uphold’, ‘partially uphold’, or ‘not uphold’ your complaint. The University Complaints Team aims to complete Stage 2 Complaints within 90 calendar days of the start of Stage 2.

If you believe that the outcome of your Stage 2 complaint is unreasonable or unfair, you can request a review of the previous stages.

DEADLINE – Stage 3 must be submitted within 14 days of receipt of the Stage 2 outcome.

You’ll need to fill in the  Stage 3 Request for Review Form and email it to  [email protected].

The Stage 3 Review will not re-evaluate the issues or initiate an additional investigation. 

As this is a ‘review’ stage, nothing that hasn’t already been mentioned should be added.

You should specify on your form why you believe your complaint should be reviewed, preferably using one or more of these categories:

• There were procedural irregularities in the investigation of the complaint, which had a material effect on the outcome
• New evidence can be presented which wasn’t available earlier in the process, and you were unable to reasonably do so
• The outcome of the investigation is unreasonable based on the weight of the evidence.

The Reviewer will not investigate or discuss the issues with you any further but will consider whether the relevant procedures were followed during the formal stage.

If the Stage 3 Review is upheld, the complaint could either be returned to the original complaints officer for reconsideration or to a new complaints officer not previously involved in the matter.

If the Stage 3 Review is not upheld, the Reviewer will give clear reasons why. This concludes the University’s complaints process. If you remain dissatisfied, you can choose to take your complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA).

The Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA)

Once all university processes are completed, if you remain dissatisfied with the outcome, you can contact the OIA – an independent body set up to review student complaints.

Free to students, the OIA deals with individual complaints against Higher Education Providers in England and Wales. The OIA will consider how your complaint was handled and is interested in whether the university has acted fairly, reasonably and within its own procedures. You can contact them to speak about your case before you submit a complaint, and we recommend you do this

The University describes a disciplinary offence as: “Misconduct is an act or failure to act by a student which is judged to be inappropriate or unacceptable behaviour where that behaviour does or could negatively affect any member of the University community or any person or entity associated with the University or the University itself. Major misconduct is misconduct which appears in the reasonable opinion of the University to be significant due to its impact on the person or the property affected by the misconduct or the University itself.” 

Some examples* of what the University might consider to be behaviours worthy of disciplinary action are:

• Violent, indecent, disorderly, threatening, or offensive behaviour that causes harm, fear or distress to others.
• Harassment or bullying of any member of the University or any visitor to the University (whether in a physical or virtual environment).
• Misappropriation of University funds or assets.
• making an unauthorised recording of academic activities, including lectures. 
• distributing or publishing information in any medium which is offensive, intimidating, threatening, indecent or illegal or is intended to make others fearful, anxious, or apprehensive.
• Fraudulent activity or claims, deceit, deception or dishonesty
• Any action likely to cause injury to any person or impair the safety of the premises, including interference with health and safety access routes, equipment and/or materials.
• Use, possession, buying or selling of illegal drugs or other illegal intoxicating substances.
• Any behaviour or action of a kind which is likely to bring the name of the University into disrepute, or which reflects adversely on the relationships which the University seeks to maintain with the local community.

* This list is not exhaustive. See Appendix A of the  Student Disciplinary Procedure for more information.

A report may be made about a single student or a group of students.

Reports can be made either in person to any Student Discipline Officer (SDO) or in writing to any member of university staff, who will make sure that this is then passed on to an SDO. Reports can also be submitted to  [email protected]. Either an SDO or the Head of Student Discipline may begin an investigation based on your report. They will send you an email letting you know they have received your report, typically within 14 days.

It is likely that you will not be informed about the details of an investigation unless an outcome is relevant to you.

If you are experiencing or have witnessed harassment, discrimination, violence, or abuse, you can report it using the  University’s Online Disclosure Tool. You can do this either named or anonymously. If you report with your name, the disciplinary procedure will not begin, but someone will contact you to offer support and discuss your options. 

Anyone can report possible misconduct to the University; this is usually passed on to a Student Discipline Officer (SDO) to investigate.

If a report is deemed more serious, it may be passed on to the Head of Student Discipline. The investigating officer, either an SDO or the Head of Student Discipline, would meet the Reporting Party and the student about whom the complaint has been made separately and, where possible, normally within 14 days from when the report was made. If you are asked to attend a meeting like this, then, subject to availability, a Student Advisor can attend with you.

The Investigating Officer will then write a report, which will include possible sanctions depending on the case. This will usually be within 21 days. The outcome of a meeting like this might be that you are referred to the Head of Discipline if your investigating officer was an SDO or that it is referred to a Disciplinary panel if the findings are deemed serious.

If the report is of something illegal, then the University may inform the police.

If an allegation is of major misconduct and requires further review, you may be invited to a Disciplinary panel. This is usually within 30 days of the initial report. At least 7 days before the panel, you will be sent a Disciplinary report and any evidence they may have. You can also invite a witness to give evidence, but you must give the panel at least 7 days’ notice.

During the panel, the Investigating Officer will present the case, and then you will be given the opportunity to respond. Witnesses will also be given the opportunity to speak. Once the panel has heard all statements and reviewed all evidence, it will decide, and you will get an outcome from the panel in writing within 7 days of the panel. If you have a previous disciplinary history, then the panel may take this into account when deciding.

The reporting party will not be made aware of any sanctions imposed.

We advise getting in touch with our team if you receive an invitation to a meeting. You can  book an appointment with one of our advisors. Send us the invitation letter, all attachments and any relevant information so that we can understand the case and offer you advice.

You can prepare a statement and/or evidence to present to the panel. In this, you can explain your recollection of events, add any evidence if you have any and explain if you have any mitigating circumstances that have impacted you. If you are feeling worried or concerned about being able to speak clearly or cover everything you wish to convey in the meeting, then this is a good way of making sure the panel will hear everything you wish to include. You can send your statement to us to read over if you would like some advice or guidance on what to include, and then you can email it to the person who first invited you to the meeting or read it out during the panel.

You can appeal an outcome of the Disciplinary process, but only on one of the following grounds:

• There is a material irregularity or failure in the conduct of the original investigation or hearing.
• There is evidence of bias or prejudice during the original investigation or hearing.
• Relevant material or evidence has come to light since the Investigation Officer or Panel reached its original decision.
• The penalty applied is excessive or unreasonable.

        Deadline for Appeals

You can appeal within 10 days of receiving your outcome and write to the Head of Student Discipline stating which grounds you wish to use to appeal. If your investigating officer was the Head of Student Discipline, then you need to write to the Deputy University Secretary.

Your appeal will be reviewed, and you will be notified whether your appeal has been upheld or not, and if it has been upheld, whether any sanctions may have been removed or revised

To appeal the outcome from a disciplinary panel, you must email the Deputy University Secretary at  [email protected] stating which grounds you wish to use. If no appropriate grounds are identified, then the appeal will be dismissed. If you have suitable grounds, your appeal will be referred to a member of the university’s executive board, who will decide the outcome.

If the appeal is upheld (successful), then they may decide that the allegations be dismissed or that they need to be considered again at another Disciplinary Panel. 

1. Fill Out the  Form
2. Gather Your Documents: Collect any supporting documents you need (like a doctor’s note). If you don’t have your evidence 48 hours before the deadline, explain why and when you expect to be able to submit it.
3. Submit Early: Turn in the form and documents at least 48 hours before your assignment is due to your  School Office, but remember your school office will be closed over the weekend and any university closure days, e.g. public holidays.
4.  If you have a Learning Support Plan, you will have a revised submission deadline. If you need an extension, you should submit a form as described above. Also, contact the  Disability and Learning Support team for advice. 
5. FAQ’s:  frequently asked questions 

Your  school office will be able to advise you on the extension to deadline process and give you information about how and when decisions are made.

If you are experiencing difficulties and would like to discuss this further, we encourage you to contact one of our support services, such as your  Personal Academic Tutor, Student Support and Guidance Tutor, or Course/ Module Leader.

A Panel will formally consider whether you can remain on the course and whether you are ‘fit to practice’ within your chosen profession.

You are strongly advised to attend the Panel meeting; an adviser from our service can attend this meeting with you (subject to availability). You must tell the Chair of the Panel the name and contact details of your representative as soon as possible, before the hearing.

You may call witnesses, but you must inform the Chair of the Panel at least 5 days in advance of the date of the hearing if you wish to do this. You can also provide written evidence and submit this in advance of the hearing. You should also receive from the University copies of any documents to be considered by the Panel.

If you fail to attend without good reason, a decision will be made in your absence.

The Panel will consider the relevant professional code of conduct and/or professional requirements and any witness statements when making its decision.

At the end of the Fitness to Practise hearing, you’ll be asked to leave the room while the Panel considers the outcome. The decision will be based on the evidence and on the balance of probabilities. The following are typical examples of outcomes of a Panel hearing:

• Your fitness to practise is impaired (reduced) and you should receive a penalty.
• There are no grounds for concern regarding your fitness to practise, in which case the matter will be dismissed.

You can find the full list of possible penalties in the   Fitness to Practice Procedure .

Yes, but only in certain circumstances.

You can appeal against the decision of the Panel if:

• New evidence has come to light that was not available at the time.
• The decision was disproportionate.
• There was an error or irregularity in the process.

The appeal must be submitted to the university Registrar within 10 working days of the decision being made available to you.

The BSU Advice team can discuss your grounds for appeal with you and assist you through the process.

We can:

• Advise you on the Fitness to Practice procedure.
• Assist in putting your statement together.
• Accompany you to any University meetings caused by the allegation.
• Advise you on gathering evidence to support you.

If you are facing allegations that might lead to Fitness to Practice proceedings, we strongly recommend that you be accompanied at meetings by a member of the BSU Advice team.

We understand that if you are facing allegations that might lead to Fitness to Practice proceedings, you may be feeling anxious about what will happen or why you are being investigated, so we’ve put together some words of advice.

• Firstly, don’t panic! Many students who are affected by fitness-to-practice issues go on to successfully complete their courses and qualify for their chosen profession.
• Secondly, do not delay getting help.
• Please review in detail the relevant professional Codes associated with your course (for example, the  HCPC Standards of Conduct, Performance, and Ethics) and appreciate how they may relate to your situation.
• Make a note of anything you do not understand or do not agree with in the information you are given. If you feel that this gives an incomplete picture of the circumstances surrounding the fitness issue, or if it somehow misrepresents things from your perspective, then think about what additional information you would like to be considered.
• Be honest. Remember that the University doesn’t expect you to be perfect, particularly if you are a first—or second-year student, but they do expect you to demonstrate honesty and integrity regarding your practice and learning.
• Don’t be tempted to try to ‘hide’ aspects of your situation. If you are anxious about disclosing something, remember you can discuss this with us in confidence first.
• Above all, you need to show in your response to the fitness proceedings that you understand what your profession expects from you, that you have insight, and that you can meaningfully and appropriately reflect on the situation and what you might learn from it.

An extension is useful if you have a short-term problem that will cause you to miss a deadline. If you have an unexpected situation that you think will be resolved relatively quickly, but it is stopping you from completing or handing in your work by the published deadline, you can apply for an extension.

For long-term issues such as ongoing health problems, caring responsibilities, maternity or a personal situation, you may need to take a Break in Study (known as an intermission or intercalation). You may also be considering time away from your studies for other reasons, but regardless of your motive, it is a good idea to discuss the matter with the Students’ Union Support team or your School 

Student Support and Guidance Tutor (SSGT) or your  School Operations and Support, where you can access one-to-one advice and support.

To take a break and spend time away from your studies, you must submit a request to your Course Leader, explaining your reasons for the request.

The length of your period of Intermission will vary according to your individual needs, course, and stage of study. Your course leader will decide the start and end date and consider the requirements of your course. 

“Intermission is not a student’s right and is permitted only at an appropriate stage of the course as determined by the Course Leader, normally at the end of a given semester, term or stage of study i.e., after completion of all assessment(s) in a module(s)” ( GEAR Section A11.2).

What happens next?

During Intermission, your studies will be suspended, and you will be de-registered from the course for the determined period. You cannot undertake assessments during this time. When your time away from university is coming to a close, someone from your school should contact you with details of how to restart your course and details of how to re-activate your Student Central account. You will then need to activate your account and re-enrol with the university via Student Central.

It is important to be aware of the Maximum Period of Registration on your course. This is the maximum length of time a student may take to complete a course. A period of Intermission does not ‘stop the clock’, so a long break can potentially cause you to exceed this period. More information about the maximum period of registration can be found in the University’s  General Examination & Assessment Regulations (GEAR), Section D.

You also need to be aware of the possible impact on your student funding. If you need to take a break, you or the University will need to contact Student Finance England. You may be in receipt of overpayments. You should talk to the  university’s Student Money Advice team to discuss the effects on your student finance.

If you are an International Student on a Tier 4 visa, a break in study may not be possible, or you may need to apply for a new visa. Seek advice from the university

Further information on Intermission can be  found the university’s website.

When your time away from university is coming to a close, your school will contact you with details of how to restart your course, confirmation of your end-of-year results and details of how to access My Studies. You will need to activate your account and enrol with the University via Student Central.

If yours is a long-term health issue or disability and you can continue with your studies, it is advisable to request a Learning Support Plan. This will help you get the appropriate ongoing support you need to succeed at university. You can contact the  university’s Disability and Leaning Support team for help with this. See also the  university’s web pages for more information.

If your course requires you to attend placement, you will need to consider whether you wish to share information about the learning support you require with the placement provider. The University does not normally share this information with third parties; therefore, you should discuss your needs with the University’s Disability team and your course leader before undertaking your placement. If you require additional learning support for a condition that you’ve not declared, or because your needs have changed, you should speak to the Disability & Learning Support team to have your needs re-assessed.