The Teaching and Learning Delivery team within Student and Academic Services and the Division of Campus Life provide guidelines to staff members on handling cases of plagiarism and academic malpractice and also guidance to students on plagiarism and other forms of academic malpractice.

Advice and Response also provide information about how to refer to the University Discipline Panel, how to request a student suspension, unacceptable behaviour and conducting assessment meetings with students.

Academic appeals relate to when a student believes that they may have grounds to appeal against an Examination Board’s decision e.g. a degree classification. 

Complaints are a way to raise most other matters when a student wants to express some form of dissatisfaction with their experience at the University. 

The University is committed to handling both types of cases fairly and based on the procedures that underpin them.  Information about academic appeals and complaints can be found on the following website: www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/tlso/academic-appeals-complaints-and-misconduct/.

Regulation XIX (Academic Appeals) underwent a full review in 2022-2023 and the updated Regulation will be implemented in autumn 2023. Click here for more details about the process.

The University aims to encourage active participation in all learning activities through regular attendance and engagement and provides information for Schools on good practice.

Regulation XX, Monitoring Attendance and Wellbeing of Students and the policy on Recording and Monitoring Attendance, detail the responsibility of students and staff with regard to work and attendance.

In addition, all programme/student handbooks must include a clear statement of attendance requirements and how attendance is recorded and monitored.

Regulation XX Monitoring Attendance and Wellbeing of Students should be read alongside the policy on Recording and Monitoring Attendance and the guidelines for monitoring student attendance. 

The University of Manchester is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare and safety of children and follows strict guidelines in doing so.

Disciplinary issues can arise in a variety of different contexts at the University, one of the main divides being around academic malpractice (e.g. plagiarism) and general behaviour issues (e.g. threatening behaviour). The type of issue that has arisen will influence the location that the disciplinary process takes place e.g. tampering with fire equipment in a halls of residence may be dealt with by the ResLife Team.

Information on student conduct and discipline is available at: www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/tlso/academic-appeals-complaints-and-misconduct/conduct-and-discipline-of-students/ and also from the Advice and Response team.

Please see also the academic malpractice section on this page.

The death of a student is always a sensitive and difficult matter, so it’s important that we follow University guidance to make sure the appropriate steps are taken.

The guidance includes:

• A clear statement of responsibilities and actions
• A checklist for Family Liaison
• Key Contacts
• A list of colleagues who are automatically notified of a student death, once it has been verified.

No action shall be taken until the Directorate for the Student Experience Lead Coordinator has confirmed that the news is correct and next of kin have been informed. Once the death has been verified, a named Coordinator from the student's School will be appointed.

For further information please contact Sarah Hartley, Student Experience Officer in the DSE Directorate Office.

If you, or any of your colleagues have been affected by the death of a student, you can get support from the Counselling and Mental Health Service.

The term ‘Dignity at Work and Study’ emphasises that everyone has the right to be treated with respect during their time at The University of Manchester.

Our policies aim to give a supportive, confidential and transparent process that proactively tackles harassment, bullying, discrimination and victimisation and encourages respect and trust.

The University's Dignity at Work and Study policy, is accompanied by a procedure for students.

The Equality and Diversity section of Staffnet also provides advice, support and guidance on equalty and diversity-related issues.

The University is committed to providing an environment free from discrimination, bullying, harassment or victimisation, where all members of its community are treated with respect and dignity.

The University's Equality and Diversity policy ensures that equality of opportunity is available for all staff and students, irrespective of:

• age.
• disability.
• ethnicity (including race, colour and nationality).
• gender (including gender reassignment, gender identity, marital status, pregnancy or maternity).
• religion, belief.
• sexual orientation (including civil partnership status).

The Equality and Diversity section of Staffnet also provides advice, support and guidance on equalty and diversity-related issues.

The University owes a duty of care to its staff and its students and it must comply with health and safety legislation. The University is therefore obliged to take action if a student presents a risk to themselves or to others. The level of risk posed by a student will include an assessment of the impact of the student’s behaviour on both themself and others.

The University has in place a Policy on Supporting Health, Fitness and Return to Study. The Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health has a procedure for Fitness to Practise for students on certain programmes leading to a professional qualification and a number of other programmes have something similar in their programme regulations.

If students are facing proceedings they can receive support from the SU Advice Service.

If you have any queries relating to Fitness to Study, you can contact the Head of Advice and Response.

Sometimes we need guidance in knowing what to say and what our limits are.

You may be asked about our students by somebody outside of the University. To make sure you are following regulations while also dealing with the matter sensitively, take a look at our information on handling enquiries from concerned third parties.

There’s also information for parents, relatives, friends and guardians on the student support website about the support available at the University and the limitations of what we can share.

In general we share information as needed to enable the student to engage and be supported – governed by the Privacy Notice http://www.regulations.manchester.ac.uk/data-collection-notice/.

The expectations of the student and the nature of the information they impart will be the determining factors. If a student reveals something particularly sensitive to a member of staff then they may obviously have an expectation of confidence; they may even obviously state ‘don’t tell anyone’ therefore the member of staff should be very clear based on the content of the information whether or not they can agree to keep it confidential from the outset and consent to share with colleagues should be sought.  Confidential is also distinct from “secret”, and so appropriate recording of the information that has been disclosed should be undertaken.  

Clearly, if the imparted information raises concerns about the student’s welfare or that of another person then staff should be sharing the information with the appropriate staff within the University. Information may be shared with colleagues within the School - e.g. PS to academic and vice versa - but also with colleagues in, for example, Campus Life or Residences. They should inform the student that they will need to share it and should encourage the student to agree to the appropriate University staff being informed where possible, but if the risk is seen as significant they should share regardless and usually tell the student that they will do this even if consent has been refused.

Exceptions will as ever apply where the member of staff feels that by informing the student their reaction will be so severe that the risk of harm is greater in which case they should share without informing the student.

If colleagues in Schools are unsure whether the threshold has been reached for disclosure without consent to others within the university,  then they are welcome to discuss with the Head of Campus Life in the first instance.

This flowchart may also help colleagues feel clearer about the steps to take when there are serious concerns. 

The University has a policy* to cover our approach to student mental health, together with a guidance document for staff, and guidance for students.

The Staff and Student Mental Health and Wellbeing strategy reflects the University's commitment to ensuring our approach is in line with best practice in the sector.

If a student’s mental health is having a significant impact on their daily life and academic performance, you can refer a student to the Counselling and Mental Health Service with their permission, or they can refer themselves.

The Counselling and Mental Health Service offers telephone advice for staff who are helping students in difficulty, and also provides regular training sessions on recognising symptoms and managing challenging interactions. If you ever need assistance out of hours, more information is available on our help in a crisis page or you can contact Health Assured for more advice.

*Please note this is currently under review. This section will be updated once completed (information correct as of June 2023).

The policy on Mitigating Circumstances enables students to request that the University takes into account any unforseeable or unpreventable circumstance they disclose that could have a significant impact on their academic performance.

To support the policy, there is also a supplementary set of Mitigating Circumstances procedures, and for students, there is a summary page about the policy, a basic guide and a standard request for mitigation form.

It should be noted that some Schools have their own School-specific request for mitigation form or online form for submission, so students would need to complete the relevant form and submit it to their School Support Office or equivalent.

If students would like assistance in completing the form, you can refer them to the Students' Union Advice Service.

The University's policy on religious observance for students can be found at: www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/tlso/policy-guidance/assessment/practice-of-assessment/religious-observance/.

There is a policy on Interruptions to Undergraduate and Postgraduate Taught Programmes of Study, along with guidance for students.

For PGR students there is a policy on Circumstances Leading to Changes to Postgraduate Research Study.

Please see the  interruption and withdrawal  section of responding to issues for guidance on a number of considerations for students in these circumstances.