This procedure should be read in line with the Fitness to Practise Regulations. If there is any conflict between the Procedures and the Fitness to Practise Regulations, the Regulations will take precedence. This procedure is indicative of how the University will apply the Fitness to Practise Regulations but the University reserves the right to vary the procedure as and when circumstances warrant such a deviation.
1. Definitions
1.1 An individual who raises a fitness to practise concern against a student shall be referred to as the “Reporting Person”.
1.2 A student against whom a fitness to practise concern has been raised shall be referred to as the “Responding Student”.
2. Raising a Fitness to Practise Concern Against a Student
2.1 A Reporting Person wishing to formally raise concerns about a student’s fitness to practise shall do so by contacting the relevant School.
2.2 Reporting Persons raising concerns about a student’s fitness to practise are recommended (where possible) to complete and submit the Formal Statement of Fitness to Practise Concerns form. In line with regulation 7.1 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations, the Reporting Person must report their concerns in writing and must submit any of their supporting evidence (including witness statements and any other evidence that the Reporting Person obtains) that they have obtained when reporting the concerns about a student.
2.3 The University recognises that it may not always be possible or appropriate for a Reporting Person to complete and submit the Formal Statement of Fitness to Practise Concerns form. In order to support a Reporting Person to raise a concern, a written summary of the concerns, together with any supporting evidence, can be provided to the University, in place of the Formal Statement of Fitness to Practise Concerns form.
3. Head of School Procedure
3.1 On receipt of reported concerns, the matter will be referred to the Head of School (or nominee).
3.2 The Head of School (or nominee) will consider the concerns raised and any supporting evidence and will determine either:
- That the report and evidence raised does not present a fitness to practise concern and the concern is dismissed. No further action will be taken but a record of this decision will be kept.
- That the report and evidence raised presents a low-level fitness to practise concern and the concern will be addressed via the low-level procedure (section 4).
- That the report and evidence raised presents a fitness to practise concern and will be investigated via the fitness to practise investigation procedure (section 5).
3.3 The Head of School (or nominee) will also decide whether the concerns should be considered under the Interim Measures Regulations. A decision not to consider interim measures at this point in the procedure does not prohibit the concerns being considered/reconsidered under the Interim Measures Regulations as the procedure progresses.
4. Low-Level Concerns Procedure
4.1 As per regulation 8 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations, where it is deemed appropriate, a concern may be dealt with informally via the relevant School’s low-level concerns procedure. This procedure may include requiring the Responding Student to meet with relevant School staff to discuss the concerns raised and to agree behaviours going forward.
4.2 If required to meet with relevant School staff, the Responding Student will be notified of the date and time of the meeting in advance, and will be advised of the purpose of the meeting. The School staff conducting the meeting will ensure that a record of the meeting is taken; this may include having a note taker present.
5. Investigation Procedure
5.1 Where it is deemed that an investigation into the Fitness to Practise concerns raised is necessary, an Investigating Officer will be appointed by the Head of School (or nominee) as appropriate.
5.2 The Investigating Officer shall initiate an investigation into the fitness to practise concerns raised. This will normally include the examination of any relevant documentation and evidence submitted by both the Reporting Person and the Responding Student. Previous findings of impaired fitness to practise or of misconduct (e.g. academic offences or student conduct offences) may be taken into consideration as part of the investigation. The Investigating Officer is not obliged to seek out additional information / evidence to support a Responding Student’s case.
5.3 As part of the investigation, the Investigating Officer may consider it necessary to meet individually with the Reporting Person, any witnesses and/or other relevant parties. The Responding Student will normally be required to meet with the Investigating Officer. The decision on whether to invite individuals to attend an investigation meeting or to invite them to submit written representations shall rest with the Investigating Officer. The individual invited to meet with the Investigating Officer will be notified of the date and time of this meeting. The meeting invitation will explain the purpose of the meeting and the support that they can bring to the meeting. Investigation meetings may be carried out face-to-face or remotely. The Investigating Officer will ensure that records of all investigation meetings are taken; this may include having a note taker present.
5.4 If the Responding Student is invited to attend an investigation meeting, in advance of the meeting with the Investigating Officer, the Responding Student will be provided with:
- A copy of the Fitness to Practise Regulations; and
- Details of the fitness to practise concerns. This may include but is not limited to, relevant details regarding the alleged incident(s)/behaviour(s) giving rise to the fitness to practise concerns such as date(s) and time(s) of the alleged incident(s)/behaviour(s), the locations(s) of the alleged incident(s)/behaviour(s), name(s) of individual(s) involved in the alleged incident(s)/behaviour(s).
5.5 Following the meeting with the Investigating Officer, the Responding Student will be provided with:
- A (redacted, where necessary) copy of the Formal Statement of Fitness to Practise Concerns form or equivalent written statement; and
- Any additional documentation or evidence submitted by the Reporting Person, including witness statements, or records of investigation meetings as appropriate.
5.6 Once in receipt of the documentation (as detailed in 5.5), the Investigating Officer will set a deadline for the Responding Student to provide a response to the fitness to practise concerns; this includes collating and presenting any evidence (including witness statements) that the Responding Student wishes to provide in support of their case. Documentation submitted after this deadline, without good cause and/or prior approval for the delay, may not be considered.
5.7 Should the Reporting Person and/or Responding Student include witness statements within their investigation submission, the witnesses will be required to confirm the accuracy of the statement and will be advised that their name and the details of their statement will be disclosed to the Reporting Person and Responding Student. If a witness does not confirm the accuracy of their statement, it will not be used in evidence. In confirming the accuracy of their witness statement, the witness confirms that they are content for their statement to be included and shared as part of the investigation. Student witnesses will be advised of the potential consequences of failing to respect the confidentiality of the process and/or providing false statements.
5.8 Once the Investigating Officer has concluded their investigation, the Investigating Officer will make a written report of their findings to the Head of School (or nominee), providing copies of all supporting evidence.
6. Fitness to Practise Investigation
6.1 If, on consideration of the Investigating Officer’s report, the Head of School (or nominee) requires additional information prior to making a decision on the case, the Head of School (or nominee) may refer the case back to the Investigating Officer for further investigation.
6.2 Where the Head of School (or nominee) identifies a student misconduct or academic offence, the matter may be referred for investigation under the Conduct Regulations and/or the Procedures for Dealing with Academic Offences. In these circumstances, the Fitness to Practise Procedure will be held in abeyance until a finding is made on whether a conduct or academic offence has been committed.
6.3 After consideration of the Investigating Officer’s report and in consultation with the Director of Academic Services (or nominee), the Head of School (or nominee) will make a decision in line with regulation 9.3 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations. The Responding Student will be advised of this decision, a rationale for the decision, and will be provided with a copy of the investigation report by email to their University email account within eight working days of the decision being made. The date of notification of the Head of School’s (or nominee) decision will be deemed to be the date of the email to the Responding Student’s University email account. Where appropriate, the Responding Student will be advised of their right to request a referral to the Fitness to Practise Panel (as per section 9.5 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations).
6.4 Where a sanction is imposed by the Head of School (or nominee), the Responding Student shall have the right to request a referral to the Fitness to Practise Panel. Students wishing to request a referral must do so in writing to the Head of School (or nominee) within ten working days of notification of the Head of School’s (or nominee) decision. Referral requests received after this deadline will be considered in line with the late appeals process (section 8.2).
7. Fitness to Practise Panel
7.1 When convened, the Fitness to Practise Panel will normally consist of:
- A senior member of academic staff from the relevant school (Chair).
- Clinically or professionally active member(s) of the relevant profession (that is a member of the profession which the Responding Student is either studying to be eligible to join or has already joined).
- A Head of School (or nominee) from a School other than the School involved.
- A Sabbatical Officer from the Students’ Union.
7.2 At all meetings of the Fitness to Practise Panel three members (i.e. two members and the Chair) shall constitute a quorum. The quorum must include a member of the relevant profession.
7.3 A member of staff from the relevant School shall normally act as Secretary to the Fitness to Practise Panel. The Secretary shall be responsible for:
- Oversight of the administration of the Panel’s proceedings;
- Circulating any written submissions and other relevant documents ahead of and during the Panel meeting;
- Drafting and (once approved) circulating Panel outcome letters; and
- Producing minutes as a formal record of the Panel meeting.
7.4 The Responding Student will be required to attend the Panel meeting and will be given five working days’ notice of the date, time and venue of the meeting, as well as the concerns to be considered by the Fitness to Practise Panel.
7.5 Ahead of the meeting, the Responding Student will be provided with copies of the documentation to be considered by the Panel and will be informed of the Panel membership.
7.6 The Reporting Person(s) will not normally be required to attend the Panel meeting.
7.7 The Responding Student will be permitted to submit any additional evidence in support of their case. The onus is on the Responding Student to collate and present this evidence at least two working days prior to the Panel meeting. Documentation submitted after this deadline, without good cause and/or prior approval for the delay, may not be considered.
7.8 Normally, the Head of School (or nominee) and/or the Investigating Officer will attend the Panel meeting, where they may be asked to outline the nature of the concerns raised and respond to questions the Panel may have about the case. However, the Panel meeting may continue in the absence of the Head of School (or nominee) and/or the Investigating Officer.
7.9 Where the Head of School (or nominee) and/or the Investigating Officer is present at the Panel meeting, the Responding Student, and Head of School (or nominee) and/or Investigating Officer shall each be present while the other is speaking.
7.10 Should the Responding Student fail to attend the Panel meeting without providing valid reason for their absence in advance, the Panel reserves the right to consider the case and make a decision on the basis of the paperwork alone.
7.11In the case that the Responding Student has requested a referral to the Fitness to Practise Panel, if the Responding Student fails to attend this meeting without providing valid reason for their absence in advance, the Panel reserves the right not to consider the case further.
7.12 The Fitness to Practise Panel will make a decision in line with regulation 10.1-10.2 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations.
7.13 If it is determined by the Fitness to Practise Panel that the Responding Student’s fitness to practise is impaired, when deciding the level of sanction to be imposed, the Fitness to Practise Panel will consider each sanction, starting with the least serious, taking into account the following criteria:
- The seriousness of the fitness to practise concern;
- The relevant professional body regulations and/or guidance;
- The professional expectations for the student relative to their level of study;
- Any previous history of fitness to practise concerns;
- The extent of the student’s insight into their behaviour and any mitigating action taken to prevent recurrence of behaviour; and
- The appropriateness of the sanction in relation to the fitness to practise concern.
7.14 The Responding Student will be advised of the Fitness to Practise Panel decision and a rationale of the decision by email to their University email account within eight working days of the decision being made. The date of notification of the Fitness to Practise Panel’s decision will be deemed to be the date of the email to the Responding Student's University email account. The Responding Student will be advised of their right to appeal to the Fitness to Practise Appeals Panel (see section 8).
8. Appeal to the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel
8.1 Where a sanction is imposed by a Fitness to Practise Panel, the Responding Student shall have the right to appeal to the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel. Students wishing to appeal must submit an Appeal to the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel form and all supporting evidence to the relevant Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor (c/o appeals@qub.ac.uk) within ten working days of the notification of the Fitness to Practise Panel decision. Evidence submitted after the deadline may not be considered.
8.2 Late Appeals
8.2.1 As per section 12 of the General Provisions Relating to Academic Appeals, Conduct, Academic Offences, Student Complaints and Fitness to Practise, appeals received after the deadline will not normally be accepted. If the Responding Student can demonstrate that they were unable to submit their appeal before the deadline due to circumstances beyond their control (e.g. hospitalisation), the appeal may be accepted. The Responding Student must submit a written statement to this effect, along with any supporting evidence. This statement and any supporting evidence must be submitted at the same time as their appeal documentation, and should relate to the entire period from notification of the original decision until submission of the late appeal. Failure to submit this documentation will result in the late appeal not being accepted.
8.2.2 The statement and supporting evidence detailing the reasons for the late appeal will be considered by the Head of Student and Academic Affairs (or nominee), who will determine:
- That the Responding Student has evidenced sufficient cause for their late appeal to be accepted for consideration; or
- That the Responding Student has not evidenced sufficient cause for their late appeal to be accepted for consideration, and the appeal will not progress.
8.2.3 The decision of the Head of Student and Academic Affairs (or nominee) will be communicated to the Responding Student within eight working days of the decision being made. In the case of the late appeal not being accepted for consideration, the outcome letter will explain the reasons for the decision and will advise that there is no further internal right of appeal; signposting the Responding Student to their right to submit a complaint of maladministration to the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman (NIPSO) within six months of notification of the final decision.
8.3 Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel to Consider Appeal
8.3.1 The Responding Student will be required to attend a Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel hearing, on a date which will be fixed.
8.3.2 The Responding Student may request that the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel deals with their case summarily (on the paperwork alone). However, the Chair of the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel reserves the right to require the Responding Student to attend in person, should this be deemed necessary in order to make an informed decision.
8.3.3 The Chair of the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel may request additional information from the Responding Student, the Fitness to Practise Chair (or nominee) and/or Investigating Officer, should this be deemed necessary in order to make an informed decision on the case.
8.3.4 The Responding Student will be provided with five working days’ notice of the date and time of this meeting. Prior to the meeting, the Responding Student will be provided with a copy of the paperwork to be considered.
8.3.5 When convened, the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel will normally consist of:
- A senior member of academic staff from the relevant Faculty as Chair (this may include, but is not limited to, a Pro-Vice Chancellor, Dean, Head of School, Director of Education).
- A senior member of academic staff from a School which is subject to the Fitness to Practise Regulations but is not from the Responding Student’s School.
- A member of the profession who is not a University member of staff.
8.3.6 At all meetings of the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel, three members shall constitute a quorum.
8.3.7 Members of staff from the relevant Faculty shall normally act as Secretary to the Fitness to Practise Appeals Panel. The provisions of section 7.3 apply in this regard.
8.3.8 Normally, the Chair of the Fitness to Practise Panel (or nominee) will attend this meeting to explain the reason for the penalty imposed and to respond to the grounds of appeal. However, the Panel meeting may continue in the absence of the Chair of the Fitness to Practise Panel (or nominee).
8.3.9 Where the Chair of the Fitness to Practise Panel (or nominee) is present at the Panel meeting, the Responding Student and the Chair of the Fitness to Practise Panel (or nominee) shall each be present while the other is speaking.
8.3.10 The Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel will only consider the grounds for appeal submitted by the Responding Student and will not carry out a re-hearing of the case.
8.3.11Should the Responding Student fail to attend the meeting of the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel without providing valid reason for their absence in advance of the meeting, the Panel reserves the right to consider the case on the paperwork alone or not to consider the case and to dismiss the appeal in its entirety.
8.4 Decision of the Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel
8.4.1 The Fitness to Practise Appeal Panel will make a decision in line with regulation 11.4 of the Fitness to Practise Regulations. The Responding Student will be advised of this decision and a rationale for the decision by email to their University account within eight working days of the decision being made. The Responding Student will be advised that there is no further right of appeal and signposted to their right to submit a complaint of maladministration to the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman (NIPSO) within six months of notification of the final decision.
9. Templates, forms and guidance
The relevant templates, forms and guidance can be found at: https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/AcademicStudentAffairs/AcademicAffairs/AppealsComplaintsandMisconduct/FitnesstoPractise/