We have today (25 May 2022) published our Annual Statements for 2021
for higher education providers that are members of the OIA
Scheme.
In 2021 the ongoing impact of the pandemic continued to have an
effect on the concerns students raised and to make it more
challenging for providers to respond to them. The Annual
Statements include information by provider on the number of
complaints we received and the type and outcomes of complaints we
considered in 2021. The Statements also include some information
on providers’ engagement with us during the year.
Our Annual Statements can help providers, including their
governing bodies, and student representative bodies to consider
the provider’s record in handling complaints and appeals in a
wider context. We publish the Statements as part of our
commitment to be open about the work that we do, and to make more
information available to the public about higher education
complaints. We hope that the Statements also support students’
confidence in complaints-handling processes.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
- The OIA is the independent student complaints ombuds for
higher education in England and Wales. Our Scheme is free to
students. We have a wide remit to review student complaints about
higher education providers in England and Wales, as set out in
our Scheme Rules.
Students have up to 12 months to bring their complaint to us,
after the internal processes at their provider have been
completed.
- The Statements provide useful
information about complaints and appeals that have reached the
end of internal processes at higher education providers and have
been brought to the OIA. However they do not give a full picture
of complaints and appeals within a provider, as many complaints
and appeals are resolved through the provider’s internal
processes and so are not brought to us.
- The data in the Annual Statements
should be considered in context and comparisons with other
providers are not necessarily “like with like”, so caution is
needed in interpreting the data. For example, the fact that a
Completion of Procedures (COP) Letter has been issued does not
necessarily mean that the student is dissatisfied with the
outcome. COP Letters should routinely be issued at the end of an
internal process if the complaint or appeal has not been upheld,
but may also be issued when it has been upheld, if a student asks
for one.
