Student Code of Discipline Informal stage: At the informal stage, straightforward, less serious cases are handled. Course leaders and senior residential officers are authorised to deal with these cases and to impose sanctions including: ● fines up to £100 ● a requirement to provide an apology ● a warning on the student’s file ● temporary withdrawal of a benefit There are no hearings – matters are dealt with face to face. The student must sign a letter agreeing to the proposed sanctions as there is no right of appeal under the informal procedure. If the student does not accept the sanction, the matter is referred to the formal procedure. Examples of cases that might be dealt with at the informal stage: ● Disruptive behaviour in class ● Minor damage to University property ● Noise nuisance in halls of residence

Student Code of Discipline Formal stage More serious and complex cases. If you are investigating a case and feel that the matter should be dealt with at the formal stage, you must seek the advice of the Head of Governance & Legal Affairs. Authorised officers at the formal stage are: members of Corporate Management Team, Associate Deans, Chief Operating Officers and the Head of Campus & Residential Services. Cases are dealt with at hearings and there is a right of appeal. There may be a panel of three or a single Chair, depending on the nature and seriousness of the case. Sanctions available include: ● fines up to £500 ● termination of a tenancy agreement ● suspension of up to one year ● expulsion Only the Vice-Chancellor has the authority to suspend or expel a student. The Panel could only recommend either of these two sanctions. The Governance & Legal Affairs team prepares recommendations for suspension or expulsion for the Vice-Chancellor’s approval. Examples of cases that might be dealt with at the formal stage: ● Group fights ● Serious violent conduct ● Use of weapons Some matters are automatically referred to the formal stage. They include the use of racist, sexist or homophobic language; sustained bullying or harassment; the use, cultivation or possession of illegal drugs.

Student complaints Management of student complaints has been centralised in the Governance & Legal Affairs team. The Student Complaints Procedure has three parts: ● Early Resolution Stage – where students are expected to raise matters quickly with the service area involved in order to resolve them promptly ● Formal Stage – complaints are referred to this stage when the Early Resolution Stage has failed to provide a satisfactory outcome for the complainant or the matter is sufficiently serious ● Appeal Stage – if the complainant is unhappy with the outcome at the Formal Stage, he or she may submit a request for the Appeal Stage The process at the Formal Stage is that the matter is referred to an appropriate investigating officer. This may be a Dean, Associate Dean, Head of School, Chief Operating Officer or Head of Service. The investigating officer will address each aspect of the complaint, discuss the matter with those involved and provide a report outlining the process of the investigation and the findings and any recommendations. The Governance & Legal Affairs team communicates the outcome to the complainant and provides them with a copy of the report. The purpose of the procedure is to put the complainant back in the position that they would have been in had the incident or issue not occurred. The maximum amount of compensation available is £1,000. Other remedies include the full or part waiver of fees; an apology to the complainant and action on the part of the area within which the complaint has arisen. The complainant may appeal the outcome of a formal complaint. The Appeal Stage is the end of our university’s procedure. If the complainant remains dissatisfied, they may apply to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education for a review.

Freedom of Information ● All FOI requests are dealt with by the Governance & Legal Affairs (GLA) team ● Requests can be about any aspect of the University’s business ● It is a statutory requirement that we process requests in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 ● Process and deadlines are as set down in the legislation - 20 working days for a response, therefore swift responses to requests for information are vital ● Requests for information don’t have to state that they are FOI requests ● Even if the applicant is unaware of FOI we still have to meet the Act’s requirements ● Anybody, anywhere in the world, can request information, including current staff and students. We don’t have a right to know why information is being requested ● A request who is not satisfied with the response to their request is entitled to request a review. This is carried out by the University. If they remain dissatisfied, they can apply to the Information Commissioner’s Office If you have any queries about the Freedom of Information Act, please contact the Governance & Legal Affairs team on ext or Kathryn Giddings:

Data protection ● Data Protection Act 1998 protects the privacy of living individuals and upholds individuals’ rights ● The Act applies to anyone who handles, or has access to, information about individuals and gives rights to the people the information is about ● Personal data must not be processed without the knowledge or consent of individuals ● The Data Protection Act also defines sensitive personal data. This information is subject to more stringent conditions than other personal data ● The principles of the Data Protection Act provide a framework for processing personal data. Processing covers just about any use of personal data, from collection and analysis to erasure and destruction ● Most processing of personal data within our university is already covered within our Data Protection Policy and guidance provided to students about our use of their personal information. The policy provides details of the eight principles that underpin the Act, defines personal and sensitive personal data and our obligations under the Act. The policy and guidance are available at: ● The Data Protection Act is overseen by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) ● The ICO has the power to impose fines (of up to £500,000 for the most serious breaches) and other sanctions on organisations and individuals where they have breached the Act

Data Protection Practical considerations: ● Only use personal data for the purpose that it was collected ● If you are collecting personal data, only collect what you need for the stated purpose ● Don’t hoard old files – only keep them if they’re really needed or you’re required to by law or in line with a retention policy ● Individuals have a right to see information that is held about them. This includes opinion as well as fact. ● If you’re holding personal data on a laptop or memory stick, make sure that the data is encrypted to prevent unauthorised access ● Don’t leave personal information on display ● Don’t share passwords ● Be alert to third party requests – are you sure that the individual the information is about has given their consent to disclosure to another party? ● Any requests from the police must be referred to Governance & Legal Affairs Advice is available from the Governance & Legal Affairs team on ext The team also delivers training on data protection. Sessions are bookable through iTrent