Appeals Policy

The London College of Law and Management (LCLM) aims to offer a service, which is responsive, effective and efficient. Any complaint, grievance or appeal will be dealt with in a positive and efficient manner. We will endeavour to resolve any difficulties as promptly as possible.

If there is a complaint, grievance or appeal regarding any aspect of LCLM’s service, the individual is asked to put it in writing, addressed to the Manager.

The Manager will investigate the matter and try to resolve it informally. A response will be made to the individual within 10 days.

All complaints, grievances and appeals, responses and follow-up actions are recorded by the Manager in the Grievances and Appeals file.

If the matter cannot be resolved informally specific procedures are followed for appeals related to:

Admissions Appeals against decisions made to recruit students to programmes, courses and other services provided by the college is governed by LCLM’s Admissions policy.

Assessment Appeals made by students enrolled on courses who are working towards accredited qualifications, and are appealing against any assessment decisions reached.

Grievances against Teaching Provision made by candidates enrolled on taught programmes at LCLM. This is governed by the Quality Assurance policy and service level agreements.

Staff Grievances, there is a specific procedure to be followed for grievances from members of staff.

For other appeals against actions or decisions taken by LCLM, the matter is referred to the LCLM management committee for action. If it is not able to resolve the matter, an Appeals Committee may be convened consisting of:

• A member of the LCLM management Committee;
  
  
• A staff member of LCLM depending on the issue

The Appeals Committee will meet as soon as is practically possible. The appellant and any representative invited by the Appeals Committee will be invited to present their case and answer questions. The decision of the Appeals Committee is final. The Appeals Committee may make recommendations to the LCLM management Committee, its committees, or an LCLM committee concerning any matter of detail or principle arising from a hearing.

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Quality Assurance Policy

Introduction
This Policy has the formal support of the Board of Directors of the College.
It applies, with minor stated variations where applicable, to all areas of the College's work.
Where the College enters into relationships with subcontractors it will ensure that the quality of their work will clearly enable the College to maintain its standards.
The College believes that quality assurance is an integral part of the work of every staff member, although certain people, for instance the line managers, have formal responsibilities in relation to their areas of work.

Commitments
1. The London College of Law and Management will pursue an integrated approach to quality assurance and control by:

1. setting high standards of performance from the outset,
2. striving for continuous improvement in all aspects of its work,
3. engaging all staff, directly or through their contribution to teams, in a

process of reassessment, target setting, monitoring of performance, and
action planning for improvement

2. The performance of the College will be monitored annually, and the findings communicated widely, in relation to the following areas of its work

• Students' Achievements
• Teaching, Learning and Assessment
• Resourcing
• Opportunities, Guidance and Support for Students
• its Leadership and Management

3. The London College of Law and Management will have in place formal structures to manage quality assurance
and control. These will include:

• overall responsibility at senior post holder level
• a dedicated post of Quality Manager with administrative support
• strategic involvement of the Governing Corporation through the Standards
• Committee
• consultation and reporting lines through committee links to the Academic Board and Governing Corporation

4. Quality assurance will be carried forward through review mechanisms that are linked to an overall Self Assessment process and include:

• probationary procedures for all newly appointed staff
• staff appraisal, including observation of their teaching for academic staff
• annual review of all courses
• annual review of curriculum programme areas
• annual review of progress against targets by service area quality teams

Judgements and their evidence base will be validated internally through a process of peer review, benchmarked where possible against national data and subject to external scrutiny where appropriate.

5. Quality procedures will be set out in a Quality Manual, updated annually, communicated to staff via the intranet and Staff Bulletin/briefing meetings as required. New staff will be informed of quality procedures as part of their Induction.

6. The London College of Law and Management will publish and distribute annually a College Charter communicating to students the standards which they can expect from the College in respect of:

• Information about courses
• Admissions
• Fees and Financial Help
• Learning Resources and Student Services
• Teaching and Learning
• Equal Opportunities
• Quality Assurance
• Complaints and the Guarantee of Satisfaction

7. Performance against the stated aims will be monitored annually in consultation with the student body through a minimum of two questionnaires annually, focus groups and the complaints procedure. The results of such monitoring will be made available to students and staff.

Students may lodge a complaint if they perceive the College to be falling short of its expressed obligations. All complaints will be investigated and the results communicated to complainants according to a set and published procedure.

8. The review of all College policies is a Quality Assurance responsibility. The senior management team will oversee the monitoring of College policies according to agreed time scales. The College's Annual Self Assessment Report and Development Plan will be overseen by Academic Board and Standards Committee and Governors.

9. The Quality Policy will be underpinned by a Staff Development response to ensure that identified good practise can be disseminated and support made available in areas requiring improvement.

10. The College will continue to work towards national recognition of its quality assurance processes and outcomes by seeking recognition of relevant quality marques.

11. This policy will be reviewed annually by the Quality Assurance Manager in consultation with the Board of Directors.

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Tuition Fees Refund Policy

The College offers the following guidance on policy governing the payment of tuition fees and refunds for international full-cost students. This policy is designee to be fair and equitable to all students and to support the College's attempts to keep tuition fee rises to a minimum and in the context of evolving migration policy in Higher Education under the new Points Based Systems (PBS).

Tuition fees must either be paid in full at enrolment or paid under an approved installment / direct debit plan. If any payment agreed under an approved installment / direct debit plan is not made by the due date, an additional charge of £200 may be added. In some countries, the British Embassy or High Commission will only issue a student visa if the student has paid some or all of their tuition fees to the College. The College will provide a Visa Support service to students including liaison with the relevant British Embassy, Consulate or High Commission, for those who have paid some or all of their tuition fees in advance.

A registration fee of £200 will be retained in ALL circumstances to cover postal /courier and administrative charges.

Refunds are applicable when:

• Refunds are paid only if a student visa application is lodged with the UK Home Office (IND) prior to course commencement and the student visa application has not been granted by the UK Home Office (IND).

OR

• If a prospective overseas student is unable to obtain a student visa and can submit origin al written evidence of this (British Immigration for APP200), and the original receipt.

Refunds are not applicable if:

• A student receives a student visa by UK immigration either at the UK port of entry or at an Embassy or High Commission or UK Home Office (IND) on the basis of an offer of a place from the London College of Law and Management.

• A refund will not be paid once a course has commenced.

No refund shall be given if a student visa is refused due to a students' non-attendance. It is the student's responsibility to attend classes as part of the Home Office / Border and Immigration Agency requirement to study a minimum of 15 hours per week. The Home Office / BIA will require us to supply evidence / confirmation of a student's attendance record, and it is a student's responsibility to ensure that their attendance record is adequate.

The College is obligated to notify the UK Home Office / BIA Immigration Service when a student withdraws, in the case of nonattendance or requests a transfer to any other further education institution within the UK.

The College urges prospective students to plan their finances well in advance. The Students Union organizes money advice seminars for all students. Students are very welcome to consult the Admissions Office on financial management should they experience financial difficulty whilst studying at the College.