ILM Appeals Policy. V October 2014

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2 Contents Document Change History 3 Scope 4 Definition 5 Process for appealing to ILM 6 Fees for different types of appeals 7 Escalation 8 Model policy for a Centre or Provider 9 Continuous Improvement 10 Appendix A ILMA 11 2 of 12

3 Document Change History As part of an ILM branding review the appearance of this policy was amended in July The content of this policy shall be subject to a three year review cycle or as necessary as outlined under continuous improvement. Changes to specific sections of the document made in October 2014 are listed below: Process for appealing to ILM Page No Change 6 Enhanced process guidance in a 5 stage step 6 Removal of specific actions for types of appeals as these now all follow the same process Model policy for a Centre or Provider Page No Change 9 New section 9 Addition that learners have the right to appeal direct to ILM 3 of 12

4 Scope ILM is the UK s leading provider of leadership, management and coaching qualifications, and a City & Guilds Group Business. ILM offers a specialist suite of qualifications ranging from Level 2 to Level 7, which are awarded by The City and Guilds of London Institute. ILM also specialises in assessment, learning content, and the accreditation of high quality training in the fields of leadership, management and coaching. This policy applies to prospective and existing ILM Centres and ILM Providers offering, or looking to offer, ILM qualifications endorsed programmes and other nonregulated products. It also apples to their learners. This ILM policy provides: Guidance on how to approach ILM Definitions and examples of appeals and the relevant processes are described The requirements of the Appeals policy held by the ILM Centre/Provider with an example of how you might develop and structure your own policy statement. There are some things that cannot be appealed, essentially anything: Submitted to us more than 30 working days after the key date (depending on the nature of the appeal, e.g. after completion of an internal appeals procedure; or after the EV has reported EQA decisions; or after the result has been sent to the Centre from ILMA) That took place before ILM received the learner s registration or after the learner s registration period has expired That is or should be dealt with under an employer s disciplinary or grievance procedure Involving another Awarding Organisation Involving points of law. This policy supersedes and replaces the ILM Appeals and Results Enquiry Policy Version February of 12

5 Definitions We aim to give everyone an excellent experience when dealing with ILM, so we welcome your comments, suggestions and feedback about the service you have experienced. Although many issues can be dealt with less formally, this policy provides a formal route for dealing with an ILM decision with which you disagree. We aim to ensure that: Making an appeal as easy as possible The review is conducted in a fair, reasonable and legal manner, ensuring that all relevant information is considered without bias We deal with it as promptly as possible, politely and, when appropriate, confidentially We respond in the right way, for example, by giving you an explanation or an apology where we have got things wring, and letting you know what action we ve taken We learn from appeals that were upheld and use them to improve our service. Appeals may be made against a range of issues relating to ILM decisions: Approval as an ILM Centre or recognition of a Provider is turned down or is subsequently withdrawn by ILM ILM declines or subsequently withdraws a Centre s approval for a qualification The finding of an ILM programme mapping or RPL exercise Results of assessments decisions made by the Centre or by the ILM Assessment (ILMA) service for a regulated qualification Results of assessments decisions made by the ILM Assessment (ILMA) service for a non regulated ILM product e.g. accredited trainer scheme An ILM External Verifier s decision(s) in external quality assurance (EQA) of a Centre assessed learner work ILM s decision to decline a request for reasonable adjustment, special considerations, or the use of a language other than English, Welsh or Irish. 5 of 12

6 Process for appealing to ILM Stage one: Lodging the appeal For all appeals the appeal must be ed to the ILM Regulation and Quality Improvement Manager using This must include: (if applicable) The Centre name, address and number (if applicable) The learner s name and registration number Date(s) that notification of ILM s decision was received Nature of service and decision in question and, if relevant, title and (if applicable) number of the ILM programme in question A clear statement of the grounds for the appeal All evidence needed for ILM to form a judgement (e.g. in the case of an assessment appeal, the learner s submission must be included along with mark sheet(s) and all records of assessment, internal quality assurance and the internal appeal). Process, contents and outcome of any investigation carried out by the Centre/Provider or by the learner The appellant s name, position and signature. Stage two: Paying the appeal fee and ILM appointment of lead reviewer ILM will then raise an invoice for the appropriate appeal fee (see section 6 below). If preferred, ILM Customer Services can take a card payment over the phone to save time. We make this charge to cover the administrative and personnel costs but refund the fee if your appeal is upheld. Stage 3: Conduct of review involving different ILM personnel Once payment has been received, ILM will appoint a lead reviewer who was not involved in the decision in question. Unless the appeal is challenging the process that was used, the same process will then be followed but using different people. The lead reviewer will consult as necessary with relevant parties and may ask for additional evidence. Stage 4: Lead reviewer s findings reported to appeals panel and final decision Following the review, the lead reviewer will report his/her findings to the ILM appeals panel. The appeals panel is a specially convened sub-group of the Quality & Regulatory Group, which is ILM s compliance committee. The appeals panel will comprise a minimum of two members of the ILM Quality & Regulatory Group, including at least one member of the ILM Executive, plus an independent person who has appropriate competence in the issue being appealed (an independent person is defined as someone who has not held a role within ILM for at least seven years). The appeals panel will make the final decision for ILM. In most cases, this decision will be binding and there is no further right of appeal. However, where a regulated qualification is involved, Centres or learners have the right to escalate their appeal directly to the appropriate regulator (see section 7 below). 6 of 12

7 Final stage: Communicating the decision The decision will be communicated to the appellant by the ILM Regulation & Quality Improvement Manager or equivalent. We will normally provide a response to you within 30 working days of receipt of your appeal fee. If it needs to take longer we will keep you informed. If ILM finds in favour of the appellant and overturns the original decision, then we will refund the relevant appeal fee and take all necessary remedial actions, such as issuing certificates and correcting records. In the light of the review findings, corrective actions to the relevant processes will be implemented as necessary. If you consider that ILM has not followed its own published process for appeals then please follow the ILM Complaints Procedure. Fees for different types of appeals All appeal fees are listed on the fees page of the ILM website at 7 of 12

8 Escalation In order to ensure that learners are aware of their entitlement to escalate an appeal to the appropriate regulator, Centres must ensure that induction materials include reference to this. Ofqual Learners registered on any regulated qualification have a further right of appeal to Ofqual. However the regulator requires that ILM s appeals process is exhausted first. Refer to Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) Learners registered on a Scottish Vocational Qualification that is regulated by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) have further right of appeal to the SQA. 8 of 12

9 Model policy for Centre or Provider As part of ILM approval or recognition, Centres or Providers must have an internal appeals policy. The Centre s internal appeals procedure should be followed first. However learners do have the right of appeal directly to ILM. For a fee you can ask us to have that submission independently re-assessed. It s important that your staff involved in the management, assessment and quality assurance of ILM programmes and your learners studying our programmes are fully aware of the contents of your policy and also how to appeal to ILM. Your internal appeals procedure must state clearly: The stages in the procedure Exactly what can be appealed and any matters out of scope of the procedure To whom, or to which position in the Centre/Provider, the person wanting to appeal should refer their issue What form the appeal should be in, e.g. letter, pro-forma or Any time limits for lodging an appeal and the timescale for the Centre to respond The objective and independent process the Centre will use to investigate and respond to the appeal possibly an appeals panel, consideration by a named individual, or some other appropriate alternative Any support or representation the appellant may bring to the appeal How the Centre notifies the appellant of the outcome The written records and evidence the Centre keeps and for how long A reminder that any appeal can be escalated to ILM and, in the case of assessment of a regulated qualification, can subsequently be escalated to the appropriate regulator. Full records must be kept of internal appeals, investigations and actions taken to resolve the issue. You should normally exhaust your own policy before escalating to ILM. 9 of 12

10 Continuous Improvement One of the remits of the ILM Quality & Regulatory Group is to identify improvements to ILM information, materials, processes, procedures, training and development. Part of this is achieved by reviewing the outcomes of all appeals. Where any failures or weaknesses are uncovered, the Group is also responsible for investigating whether other Centres and/or learners could be affected and any remedial action required. We aim to improve our business processes and our responses to customers in the light of learning from the feedback we receive. This policy shall be the subject of a three year review cycle or as necessary. 10 of 12

11 Appendix 1 ILM Assessment marks enquiries policy subset appeals Definition enquiries An enquiry is, in effect, a lower-level appeal covering assessments conducted by ILM and relates exclusively to a mistake in ILM s marking. An enquiry cannot be made about a disagreement over a result or when you think the mark should be higher. This policy relates only to when you have identified an arithmetical error or omission in ILM s marking, so you can ask us to re-check the marks we issued. This could involve checking that everything had been marked and that the marks were added up correctly. Scope This policy applies only to assessments carried out by ILM. This covers when Centres outsource their assessing to the ILM Assessment (ILMA) service. The process for making an enquiry is described. Out of scope There are some issues we will not investigate essentially anything: Challenging the result or the marking standard Submitted to us more than 30 working days after the date on which the Centre was notified of the result That took place before ILM received the learner s registration That is or should be dealt with under an employer s disciplinary or grievance procedures Involving another awarding organisation Involving points of law. Lodging enquiries You must make your results enquiry by ing ilmassessment@i-l-m.com within 30 days of results being issued. Please include the mark sheet in question. An Assessment Manager will check the marks or will appoint an independent person (e.g. different Lead Assessor) to do so. Outcome We will provide a response to you within 30 working days possibly a brief report on the outcome. Action If your results enquiry shows that errors were made in marking, we will issue a new mark sheet. Checking the marks is free of charge but if you want us to re-assess the work or re-mark examination papers, you need to use our Appeals Policy and pay the appropriate re-assessment fee. 11 of 12

12 Copyright ILM is a City & Guilds Group business. This content in this document is copyright The City and Guilds of London Institute [2016]. The content in this document, may not be copied, reproduced or distributed without the prior written consent of The City and Guilds of London Institute, except that: 1. candidates studying for an ILM or City & Guilds qualification may photocopy this document free of charge, for the purposes of personal study, when working towards an ILM or City & Guilds qualification 2. approved City & Guilds and/or ILM centres and providers may include a PDF version of this document on their internal intranets, provided that centre staff may only make copies of the document for the purpose of teaching candidates working towards an ILM or City & Guilds qualification The Standard Copying Conditions also apply and can be found on The City and Guilds of London Institute website ILM 1 Giltspur Street London EC1A 9DD T +44 (0) customer@i-l-m.com 12 of 12