Privacy notice for student complaints and appeals

Introduction

The Manchester Metropolitan University (‘the University’) is the Controller in respect of the personal data that is provided to us in the process of dealing with complaints and appeals. The University is registered as a Controller with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), and manages personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the University’s Data Protection Policy.

The University collects, holds and uses certain personal information when a complaint or appeal is raised in order to investigate and determine the outcome of that complaint.

The personal data we process

When the University receives a complaint or appeal, we will create a complaint file. This file will be used to store all information that we process in the course of investigating the complaint or appeal. Any appeals we receive will be further considered, with any additional documentation added to the file. This includes but is not limited to:

name
contact details
course
any other relevant background and complaint details including evidence provided by the complainant or third-party witness.

We may also need to process further data from University systems, such as academic information or health data required fully to investigate the complaint.

Information relating to any individuals that the complaint or appeal is about

This includes:

basic identifiable information, such as name and relationship to the complainant
relevant background information
details of the complaint or appeal

Information relating to third-party witnesses

This includes:

name
basic contact details
personal accounts
additional evidence relevant to the complaint in question

The purpose of the processing

The University will use the data to investigate the raised complaint or appeal and determine an outcome. This processing fulfills the core functions of the University as a public authority and is conducted in the public interest, as such we rely upon the public task lawful basis to conduct this processing, and Article 9(2)(g) ‘substantial public interest’.

The University is also required to process personal data associated with appeals and complaints to meet its obligations under consumer law, such as the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 and the unfair terms legislation.

Who we share data with

We will always review information for relevancy before sharing and redact and censor any personal information that is not deemed necessary to meet the purpose.

If you are a complainant - We will share the information you provide with any individuals who are the subject of the complaint, panel members and other relevant staff required to process your complaint. This may include sharing your evidence to supplement additional investigation outside of the complaint process, to ensure all appropriate follow-up actions are completed. We may also be required to share some information with potential witnesses in order to record their accounts and any additional evidence.

If you are the subject of the complaint - We will share relevant details of your account and information about your actions that lead to the complaint being raised with the complainant and panel members and other relevant staff. We may also be required to share some information with potential witnesses in order to record their accounts and any additional evidence.

If you are a witness - We will share relevant accounts, views, or opinions with the complainant, the subject of the complaint, panel members and any other relevant staff required to process the complaint.

Insurance brokers and insurers

Our insurance brokers and insurersmay need to be notified where there is a possibility of a claim being raised against the University. We may need to share full details about the appeals or complaints which may include the appeals or complaint form, and additional information about all involved parties.

Office of the Independent Adjudicator

In addition, if you refer a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator, there may be a need to share personal data with them in order to respond accordingly.

How long we hold information for

Information relating to the complaint or appeal will be retained by the University until the conclusion of the investigation plus six years.

Your rights and further points of contact

If you have any queries about this privacy notice or the processing of your personal data in managing the complaint process please contact the Central Student Case Management team:

For further information about the processing of your personal data by the University please see our privacy notice pages.

For information about your data subject rights (including erasure) please see our data subject rights page.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as the supervisory authority in respect of the processing of your personal data.

We would encourage you to expend our internal complaints procedure through our initial contact and the University Data Protection Officer, prior to contacting the ICO. Please contact:

For any further contact information please see: https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/