OIA Complaints

The Office of Independent Adjudicator (OIA) are an independent and impartial review body who investigates student complaints for England and Wales. Their role is to ensure that the student complaint was handled correctly and that the outcome was fair and just.

They are approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute as the consumer Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) body for Higher Education.

They are not a legal body or court and cannot apply any prosecution or legal penalties.

You must have received a Completion of Procedures Letter (CoP) to take your complaint to the OIA.

The CoP is issued to students once they have exhausted all options in the internal processes and are no longer able to further complain or appeal the matter with the College. 

Once you have received your CoP letter, you will have up to 12 months to submit your complaint to the OIA.

Please take a look at this OIA webpage for further information: Can you complain to us - OIAHE 

The process to resolve your complaint can take anywhere from 3-12 months, the OIA will keep you updated and let you know estimated timeframes.

Yes, the Students' Union Support Service will still offer guidance to you through the process.

However, once the OIA have made their verdict, we will not be able to help beyond that point.

If you need further information or to discuss your case then we can offer you an appointment with one of our advisors. Please complete our case consent form and we will be in touch to arrange an appointment.