Temporary Suspension Procedure prior to Sept 23

A temporary suspension is a where the University places short-term conditions on your access to the University campus, teaching and or placement activity. Conditions might mean that you can’t;

• Attend teaching or assessment activities
• Access online materials
• Attend placement
• Access some or all parts of the University campus
• Contact other students or members of staff of the University
• Participate in some University activities
• Participate in Students’ Union activities or access Students’ Union venues

This does not mean that the University has decided that you have done something wrong, but it is thought to be in the immediate best interest of either you, staff or other students at the time.

A temporary suspension normally happens when the University is following the Student Conduct Procedure or the Fitness to Study and Fitness to Practise Procedure. It means that an investigation can take place and a decision can be made on the best thing to do.

A temporary suspension may also be used if you are being investigated by the Police and the type of investigation or charges mean that it is difficult for you to study on your course.

The University has a duty to consider the safety and wellbeing of the University community. A temporary suspension will only be used where we feel it is necessary to safeguard you, other students or staff, or the wider community.

If you are temporarily suspended, we will still make our Student Support Services available to you, providing guidance and wellbeing support as needed. You can request this support via studentconnect@staffs.ac.uk but you will normally need to let us know when you are coming on to campus. You will also be able to access guidance and advocacy support from the Students’ Union by emailing sais@staffs.ac.uk

If you have a disability you can request that a reasonable adjustment is made to prevent you from being disadvantaged in this process. For example, you may ask us to move the location of a meeting or give you extra time to read paperwork.

Please let us know as soon as possible if this applies to you. Remember our support and wellbeing services are available to you throughout this process.

If you are studying on a Staffordshire University course which is delivered by a partner institution, it is the partner’s rules on student conduct, not these, which will apply to you. The partner will therefore apply its own rules on temporary suspensions.

However, if your course leads to professional registration, such as for teaching or a health profession, the Fitness to Practise Procedure and Temporary Suspension Policy will apply to you. Please contact your institution for more information.

If there is a concern raised about you, normally, a member of the University Executive, or a person who is responsible for making Fitness to Practise decisions, will decide whether to hold a Temporary Suspension Panel. Sometimes, in complicated cases we might refer this to an Incident Management Group. This might be because:

• You are being investigated by the Police
• The University has received a complaint about your practice
• The University is investigating a complaint about your conduct
• There is a serious concern for your wellbeing or that of others

This person may also put some immediate emergency conditions in place to safeguard you, other students and staff or the wider community. This would normally last for no more than 2 weeks and may include;

• Removing you from study and/or practice
• Preventing you from contacting other members of the University community
• Preventing you from accessing some or all parts of the campus
• Moving you to alternative accommodation

If the University decides to hold a Temporary Suspension Panel, we will contact you by telephone and e-mail to let you know. We will hold the Panel normally within 2 weeks (excluding bank holidays and University closures) of the decision being taken. If this is not possible we will keep you informed of any delay and the reasons for it. We will make sure that you have one week’s notice of the meeting.

You will be invited to come to the Panel meeting. We recommend you contact the Students’ Union as soon as you can to arrange representation. Alternatively, bring along a supportive student friend. If you want to, you can write a statement before attending.

The Temporary Suspension Panel will be made up of the following people:

• Registrar or Nominee
• Director of Student Support or Nominee
• A member of your School Management Team

If the Panel is convened because there is a complaint about your practice, we will make sure that there is also a registrant from the appropriate profession on the Panel. The Panel will apply the code of conduct from the relevant professional body.

If you are student studying on an international visa, we may ask the University International Student Support Team to understand how any temporary suspension affects your ability to study in the UK.

A meeting can go ahead with 2 of the above people and may be held digitally.

The Temporary Suspension Panel will decide whether to impose or continue with any temporary conditions placed on you. These may include:

• That you cannot attend teaching or assessment activities
• That you cannot access online materials
• That you cannot attend placement
• That you cannot access some or all parts of the University campus
• That you cannot contact other students or members of staff of the University
• That you cannot participate in some University activities
• That you cannot participate in Students’ Union activities or access Students’ Union venues

We will let you know the decision of the Panel by telephone and e-mail within 1 week (excluding bank holidays and University closures).

Once any conditions are in place, they will normally remain in place, until the situation changes. For example, a decision has been made by the University, Police or Courts on your circumstances.

If you feel that the decision of the Temporary Suspension Panel is wrong, you can appeal. This also applies to students studying with partner providers. You will need to put this in writing, to regulations@staffs.ac.uk with your evidence, normally within one week (excluding bank holidays and University closures) of the decision.

You may appeal for the following reasons, which you must make clear in your appeal:

That the procedure was not followed properly, and this has affected the outcome.

That the decision reached was unreasonable due to bias or the harshness of the sanction.

That you have new evidence which you were unable to provide earlier in the process for valid reasons.

The Registry will check that your appeal is:

• On time, normally within 1 week (excluding banks holidays and University closure) of the decision
• Meets one of the reasons to appeal.

and

• Is supported by evidence.

If your appeal does not meet all the above, we will not consider it and we will write to you explaining the reason why.

If your appeal is eligible, it will be considered by the University Vice Chancellor who will confirm the decision in writing within 2 weeks (excluding bank holidays and University closures). The Vice Chancellor may remove or vary the conditions imposed by the Temporary Suspension Panel.

If you disagree with the appeal decision, you have the right to make a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) within one year of the decision.