Conclusion of the review (Rule 15)
44Our review process comes to an end when we decide that we cannot look at a complaint, we terminate the complaint, the complaint is settled, we issue a Complaint Outcome, or we confirm our Recommendations if we have made any.
44.1If we decide we cannot look at a complaint the student or the higher education provider can ask us to reconsider our decision (paragraph 38.6).
44.2If we decide to terminate a complaint the student can ask us to reconsider our decision (paragraph 47).
45Once we have issued our Complaint Outcome the student or the higher education provider can ask us to reopen our review of the complaint.
45.1If we have decided that the complaint is Justified or Partly Justified and have proposed Recommendations, then the student or higher education provider can ask us to continue with our review instead of confirming our Recommendations and closing the case. They should ask us to continue with the review when they comment on the proposed Recommendations. It is important for the student and the higher education provider to comment on the proposed Recommendations even if there is a request to continue with the review.
45.2We will normally consider a request to reopen our review provided that it is made within 28 days of the issue of the Complaint Outcome (if the complaint is Not Justified), or the date we confirm the Recommendations (if the complaint is Partly Justified or Justified).
45.3We will reopen our review, or continue with the review, if the student or higher education provider persuades us that there is new evidence which they could not reasonably have given us at an earlier date and which could make a difference to the outcome of the review. They will need to explain why it was not possible to give us that evidence before the Complaint Outcome was issued. It is unlikely that we would consider at this late stage new medical evidence which the student says is relevant to his or her complaint. However, we may consider evidence which the higher education provider had but which it did not disclose to the student.
45.4We will reopen our review, or continue with the review, if the student or higher education provider persuades us that there might be an error in the Complaint Outcome which has or might have seriously affected the outcome. The error needs to be serious enough to be likely to make a difference to the decision (whether the complaint is Justified, Partly Justified or Not Justified, or has been terminated) or to the Recommendations we have made or are proposing to make.
45.5If we decide not to reopen or continue with our review we will explain our decision.
45.6If we have upheld a complaint and made Recommendations, and the higher education provider has complied with those Recommendations, then we will take that into account if we reopen our review. If the provider has made an offer to the student in line with our Recommendations and the student has accepted that offer then it is very unlikely that we would agree to reopen the review. The student may be asked to repay any financial award to the higher education provider before the review could continue.