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Home>Australia>Students>Policies & Procedures>Grievance and Appeals Policy

Grievance and Appeals Policy

Policy

All students of Heinz College Australia can access the grievance procedures set out in this policy.

Complaints are initially handled with the individual(s) responsible for the service or process about which the complaint is being made. If complainants are dissatisfied with the outcome of these attempts at resolution, they may appeal through the process outlined below. The complainant and respondent will not be victimised or discriminated against at any stage of the process.

Heinz College treats the complaints it receives seriously, and ensures that the processes involved are clear, prompt, confidential, and fair to all parties. Records of grievances and their outcomes will remain strictly confidential to the degree necessary for resolution. Records will be maintained in a separate file (not kept in the student’s official file) and securely stored within the office of the Program Director for a period of five years. The complainant and respondent will be allowed supervised access to these records. All internal review processes are free of charge to the complainant.

Independent review processes undertaken by an external individual/body may incur a cost to the complainant.

Procedure

1. Academic Grievance and Review Process

1.1 Students should seek first to resolve the issue with the individual(s) responsible for the service or process. Complaints addressed to the university or directly to the Executive Director will be referred back to these individual(s). If a resolution has not been attained at the initial level, students should lodge a written complaint to the Program Director. Lodgement must be made via the attached Complaint Appeal Form within 10 business days of the discovery of the event the student wishes to have reviewed.

1.2 The Program Director will acknowledge receipt of the complaint, in writing, within 5 business days. The Program Director will seek to meet the student and any other party concerned as soon as possible. Ideally this meeting will occur within 10 business days following the date the written acknowledgement is sent to the student. The complainant and/or respondent have the right to be accompanied by a third person (such as a family member, friend, counsellor or other professional support person) if they so desire.

1.3 Within 5 business days of the meeting, the Program Director will provide the student with written notification of the decision/resolution.

1.4 If unsatisfied with the decision, the student may request a review. The request for review must be made in writing to the Executive Director within 5 business days of receipt of the notification of decision/resolution and should include all materials needed for the review.

1.5 The Executive Director will review the student’s submission, schedule meetings with the student and any other relevant party as needed, and provide the student with written notification of the review decision/resolution within 10 business days of receipt of the request for review.

1.6 Should the student still remain unsatisfied, he/she may request a final review from the Dean of Heinz College. As above, the student must submit, within 5 days of written notification of the Executive Director’s decision, a written request to the Dean accompanied by all materials relevant to the review. The Dean may request meetings (via teleconference, telephone or in person, when possible) with the student and other relevant parties, as needed. The Dean will provide the student with written notification of the decision/resolution within 10 business days of receipt of the student’s request.

1.7 At the conclusion of this process, should the student still remain unsatisfied, he/she may seek, within 28 days, to have the decision/resolution externally reviewed by an independent person or body, including:

Equal Opportunity Commission of South Australia
Level 10, 30 Currie Street
Adelaide, SA 5000
FREECALL 1800 188 163
www.eoc.sa.gov.au

Office of the Training Advocate
Ground Floor, East Wing
31 Flinders Street
Adelaide, SA 5000
FREECALL 1800 006 488
www.training.sa.gov.au

1.8 The University will provide the student with the most current contact details of these bodies together with information outlining likely costs to be incurred by the student for such external review.

1.9 At any stage the student may withdraw the request for review. Such advice must be made in writing to the Executive Director.

2. Non-Academic Grievance and Review Process

2.1 Complainants should seek first to resolve the issue at the local area responsible for the service or process. Complaints addressed to the university or directly to the Executive Director will be referred back to the local area. If a resolution has not been attained, complainants should lodge a written complaint to the Program Director. Lodgement must be made via the attached Complaint Appeal Form within 10 business days of the discovery of the event the student wishes to have reviewed.

2.2 The Program Director will acknowledge receipt of the complaint, in writing, within 5 business days. The Program Director will seek to meet with the complainant and any other party concerned as soon as possible. Ideally this meeting will occur within 10 business days following the date the written acknowledgement is sent to the student. The complainant and/or respondent has the right to be accompanied by a third person (such as a family member, friend, counsellor or other professional support person) if desired.

2.3 Within 5 business days of the meeting, the Program Director will provide the complainant with written notification of the decision/resolution.

2.4 If unsatisfied with the decision, the complainant may request a review. The request for review must be made in writing to the Executive Director within 5 business days of receipt of the notification of decision/resolution and should include all materials needed for the review.

2.5 The Executive Director will review the complainant’s submission, meet with the complainant and other relevant parties as needed, and provide the complainant with written notification of the review decision/resolution within 10 business days of receipt of the request for review.

2.6 To comply with Higher Education Support Act 2003, the University has a distinct decision review procedure for FEE-HELP recipients.

FEE-HELP recipients have the right to apply for reconsideration of the decision within 28 days from the day they received notice of the decision to not re-credit or remit. The student must state the reasons why he/she is applying for a reconsideration of the decision.

The University will acknowledge receipt of the request for a reconsideration of the decision and will inform the student of:

• the reviewed decision. If the student is not advised of a decision within 45 days of receiving the application for review, the original decision remains;
• the right to apply to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of the reviewable decision; and 
• the contact details of the closets Administrative Appeals Registry and the approximate costs of lodging an appeal with the AAT.

2.7 If, at the conclusion of this internal review process, the complainant remains unsatisfied, he/she may seek, within 28 days, to have the decision/resolution externally reviewed by an independent person or body, including:

Office of the Training Advocate
Ground Floor, East Wing
31 Flinders Street
Adelaide, SA 5000
FREECALL 1800 006 488
www.training.sa.gov.au

Equal Opportunity Commission of South Australia
Level 10, 30 Currie Street
Adelaide, SA 5000
FREECALL 1800 188 163
www.eoc.sa.gov.au

Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT)
Administrative Appeals Tribunal
11th Floor, Chesser House
91 Grenfell Street
Adelaide SA 5000
(08) 8201 0600 (metropolitan area)
1300 366 700 (country areas)
http://www.aat.gov.au/
http://www.aat.gov.au/FormsAndFees/Fees.htm Forms and Fees.

2.8  The University will provide the complainant with the most current contact details of these bodies together with information outlining likely costs to be incurred by the complainant for such review.

2.9 At any stage the complainant may withdraw the request for review. Such advice must be made in writing to the Executive Director.

Note: These procedures are communicated to students and employees through the Heinz College website and in student and faculty handbooks. The above procedures do not replace or modify other university policies or procedures, or any other responsibilities which may arise under other higher education provider policies or under statute or any other law.