Good practice in a partnership context
Overarching principles
71Other sections of the Good Practice Framework set out principles and operational guidance to support providers. Providers will need to consider and adapt the guidance available in these sections to apply it to partnership contexts. But providers should still be mindful of the overarching guiding good practice principles which apply to all internal processes. Where providers do not follow the guidance and principles, they should be able to explain the reasons for this choice.
Clarity
72Students need to know what is expected of them and what they can expect from the providers delivering their course of study and the provider or organisation awarding their qualification. Providers may have a range of policies and documents that set out these expectations, for example student contracts, handbooks, codes of conduct, policies on issues such as equality and diversity and free speech, disciplinary regulations etc. Providers working in partnership should make sure that their expectations of students are compatible. It may be possible to agree shared principles and approaches. For example, it may be possible to use the same definitions of types of academic misconduct, even where the process for investigating concerns about a student’s work are different. It is important to make it clear to students studying on a particular partnership route where there is any difference to the policies that apply to them.
Timeliness
73Providers can decide the operational model for handling students’ complaints, appeals and other internal processes that best fits the operational context of their specific partnership. Providers working in partnerships should design integrated processes for a student to engage with to address their concern; students should not be expected to engage with an informal, formal and review stage at each provider. The timeframes described in other sections of the Good Practice Framework apply to the overall consideration of the student’s concern across the partnership; that is, the timeframes do not restart when a matter moves from one partner to another.
74Some issues raised by students will benefit from a rapid response. It is good practice to ensure that decisions under partnership arrangements can be made and communicated to students rapidly. Providers may wish to consider developing guidance for staff that allows rapid, high quality and consistent decision-making locally, without requiring consultation of partners on each individual submission.
Informal Resolution
75Students will often approach the front-line staff that they are most familiar or comfortable with. In many contexts it will be appropriate for an opportunity for informal resolution to be offered by the delivery provider.
Advice and guidance/support
76It is good practice to ensure that staff who may be approached by students have a good understanding of how the provider’s procedures operate, and what outcomes are possible within it. It is important that where they may be approached by students studying towards awards from different providers or awarding organisations staff have an appropriate level of awareness of the different processes that may be relevant.
77It is also good practice to ensure that all students are directed towards sources of support and advice. It is important to be clear about what services at a partner provider a student can access, and to make sure this has been agreed with the service provider, for example, the students’ union or other student representative body at an awarding provider. It is a matter for individual providers and student representative bodies to decide which students have access to their services. Where there is no access to independent advice and guidance, it is good practice to direct students to support provided by the providers themselves.
Formal investigation
78A formal investigation stage may be carried out by a delivery provider or an awarding partner, depending on their arrangements. When designing the process, providers should consider:
- which partner is best placed to gather relevant information.
- where authority to make decisions rests. Where providers decide that both partners should be involved in a decision, they should take care not to allow membership of any panels to grow too large, both to ensure that it is not intimidating for the student and to minimise administrative burden.
- the regulatory contexts which may prevent a provider from delegating responsibility for some decisions.
Smaller providers may benefit from involving partners at the formal investigation stage to help provide an independent viewpoint and manage possible perceptions of bias.
Final Review
79Where the matter relates to the student’s progression, or final award, or the quality and standards of an award, the final review stage will usually be conducted by the awarding partner. The awarding partner should ensure that there is a consistent approach, including where it has more than one delivery partner delivering teaching for the same or similar awards. It may choose to involve staff members from the delivery provider in the process.
80In other matters, the final review stage may be conducted by the delivery partner. Where awarding partners do not take an active role in individual cases, it is good practice to establish some other form of oversight by the awarding partner of issues experienced by students on the particular course of study.