USSU Complaints Procedure

Where possible complaints should be resolved informally between the parties concerned.

Where this is not possible the following formal complaints procedure should be used and has been drawn up with the aim of resolving complaints swiftly and effectively.

The complainant should complete a complaints form and forward it to the appropriate person as outlined below:

1 Complaints by students, their guests, elected officers or customers of the Union
Completed forms should be passed to the Students' Union President. Should the complaint refer to a specific member of staff or department it will be forwarded to the relevant line manager*.

2 Complaints by staff of the Union
Completed forms should be passed to their line manager. Should the incident involve the staff member’s line manager the complaint should be passed to that manager’s line manager** .

3 Complaints by external individuals or organisations
Completed forms should be passed to the Union Director** .

* If the complaint involves the President the complaints form should be passed to the Finance Officer.
**If the complaint is against the Union Director then it should be dealt with by the Director of Residential, Sport and Trading Services.

Complaints action and evaluation

Stage 1
The complaint handler will:

• formally acknowledge receipt of the complaint within 5 working days* ;
• investigate and evaluate the complaint;
• respond to the complainant in writing within 20 working days of receiving the complaint detailing what action has been taken as a result.

If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of their complaint then they will have 20 working days from the date of the Union’s response to request a review of this outcome giving reasons why they are dissatisfied. The same timescale will apply as in Stage 1 and each subsequent stage should be progressed through until a conclusion to the complaint has been reached.

The request for a review must be made in writing to:

Stage 2
The complaint handler’s line manager**

Stage 3
The Union Director*** in order that s/he can present the complaint to the complaints panel.

The complaints panel will consist of:

• the Union Director (or their nominee);
• the President (or their nominee); and
• an independent party appointed by the Union’s Operations Committee (i.e. an individual not employed by the Union).

The panel will meet and communicate their decision in writing to the complainant within 20 working days of receiving the letter of appeal.

If for any reason it is not possible to adhere to the above timescales then the complainant will be informed at the earliest opportunity.

This is the final stage of the Union’s complaint procedure.

Making a complaint through the Union’s complaints procedure does not prevent anyone from making a complaint through the University’s own complaints or grievance procedures.

The University's complaints procedure can be found by clicking here.

The Union’s Operations Committee will be responsible for monitoring this complaints procedure and will review it annually.

*‘Working days’ are Mondays to Fridays excluding public holidays and University closure days.
**If there is no direct line manager (e.g. if the original complaint handler is the Union Director or a Sabbatical Officer) then the complaint should pass directly to Stage 3.
***If the Union Director is implicated in the complaint then the complaint will be passed to the Office Manager to convene an appropriate panel for consideration of the complaint.

Complaints about immigration advice