University complaints – get the data

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Paul Bradshaw

Last week we reported on complaints to universities ranging from one for every five thousand students to one in every fifty. The data behind that, says @UnileaksUK, raises questions about the body which handles complaints where a student is unhappy with the way their university has handled it:

“Of those complaints whose justification was determined, 78% were found not justified.

“It is suggested that a result of 22% of complaints being found to be at least partially justified is too low a figure to be the realistic outcome of a complaints system which takes due cognisance of fairness … The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman … upheld or partly upheld 79%”

A report commissioned by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) also finds that:

“More than 40% feel that the OIA lacks independence, and almost half think that the process at the OIA was unfair.”

A spreadsheet with figures on all 144 universities can be found here, and a table of key figures is published below. What can you do with it?

University Stu-dents Internal com-plaints OIA com-plaints Jus-tified Partly jus-tified Not jus-tified Total dec-isions
Aberystwyth University 13735 84 9 0 1 1 7
Anglia Ruskin University 19830 4 1 0 1 1 5
University of the Arts London 28790 29 5 0 3 3 7
The Arts University College at Bournemouth 4205 1 0 0 0 2 2
Aston University 10490 117 14 0 1 6 9
Bangor University 17745 7 0 0 1 1 2
Bath Spa University 8160 21 2 0 0 1 3
University of Bath 13380 46 9 0 0 8 11
University of Bedfordshire 17280 31 7 1 1 1 8
Birkbeck College 18285 10 5 0 1 1 7
Birmingham City University 24850 348 48 2 0 36 47
The University of Birmingham 29185 13 10 0 2 6 9
University College Birmingham 10715 2 0 0 0 0 0
Bishop Grosseteste University 2200 1 0 1 0 0 1
The University of Bolton 8955 16 6 0 4 3 10
Bournemouth University 17965 67 15 0 2 5 9
University of Bradford 12740 121 8 1 0 5 10
University of Brighton 20975 79 19 1 3 9 14
University of Bristol 21720 34 6 0 0 9 12
Brunel University 15090 34 11 0 0 5 10
University of Buckingham 1060 0 0 0 0 0 0
Buckinghamshire New University 9570 25 8 0 2 1 6
University of Cambridge 22820 21 10 1 4 6 14
Canterbury Christ Church University 16755 14 6 0 0 5 7
Cardiff Metropolitan University 11170 80 6 0 0 2 3
Cardiff University 30010 403 32 0 1 12 23
University of Central Lancashire 28130 24 6 0 0 2 3
Central School of Speech and Drama 855 7 0 0 0 0 0
University of Chester 13485 15 3 0 1 1 2
University of Chichester 5010 3 2 0 0 0 0
City University 21725 74 30 0 0 10 18
The Conservatoire for Dance and Drama 1190 1 1 0 0 0 1
Courtauld Institute of Art 425 2 1 0 0 0 0
Coventry University 20230 82 15 1 3 8 14
Cranfield University 5320 3 3 0 1 3 4
University for the Creative Arts 7585 8 5 0 0 1 3
University of Cumbria 13105 38 4 0 1 1 2
De Montfort University 21585 101 16 0 1 10 14
University of Derby 22725 4 2 0 2 0 2
Durham University 16845 46 11 0 0 4 6
University of East Anglia 15290 49 12 3 1 3 9
University of East London 26315 33 19 0 3 9 20
Edge Hill University 24340 85 10 1 3 9 15
University of Essex 12295 108 23 1 0 7 9
University of Exeter 16195 87 13 0 1 11 15
University College Falmouth 3180 24 6 0 1 3 6
University of Glamorgan 25770 25 10 0 1 0 5
University of Gloucestershire 9635 17 1 1 0 2 3
Glyndŵr University 7730 40 7 0 0 3 7
Goldsmiths, University of London 7815 72 22 3 2 5 14
University of Greenwich 26120 292 39 4 2 15 25
Guildhall School of Music & Drama 750 4 0 0 0 0 0
Harper Adams University College 4445 23 3 0 0 2 2
University of Hertfordshire 25195 25 11 0 2 7 10
Heythrop College 895 0 0 0 0 0 0
The University of Huddersfield 21590 134 16 1 1 12 17
The University of Hull 22370 91 11 0 0 10 4
ifs School of Finance 1340 0 0 0 0 0 0
Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine 14150 52 13 1 3 12 23
Institute of Cancer Research 290 0 0 0 0 0 0
Institute of Education 7250 5 0 0 0 0 0
Keele University 10365 32 6 0 0 5 8
The University of Kent 18295 9 4 0 0 0 2
King’s College London 22275 89 23 0 0 19 26
Kingston University 25930 130 34 0 2 16 22
Lancaster University 12695 53 12 2 1 3 6
The College of Law N/A 21 4 0 0 0 0
Leeds College of Art 1150 0 0 0 0 0 0
Leeds Metropolitan University 27800 234 31 1 2 15 30
Leeds Trinity University College 3445 3 0 0 0 0 2
The University of Leeds 32370 37 14 1 3 8 17
University of Leicester 16505 201 28 3 4 22 36
University of Lincoln 13830 4 3 0 0 1 2
Liverpool Hope University 6980 38 11 0 0 2 6
The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts 920 2 0 0 0 0 0
Liverpool John Moores University 25995 20 5 0 2 4 7
University of Liverpool 19950 261 14 0 0 1 9
London Business School 1780 5 0 0 1 2 3
London Metropolitan University 26380 306 31 4 4 18 35
London School of Economics and Political Science 9575 69 8 1 0 8 10
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine 1190 1 0 0 0 0 0
London South Bank University 24280 292 53 3 9 26 52
University College London 21210 42 17 1 3 7 14
University of London N/A 4 4 0 0 2 3
Loughborough University 17165 218 13 0 1 9 10
The Manchester Metropolitan University 34515 161 33 3 0 16 24
The University of Manchester 38190 113 28 1 1 14 20
Middlesex University 21350 91 27 2 3 13 27
Newcastle University 19575 415 19 1 2 10 18
Newman University College Birmingham 2775 2 0 0 0 1 2
The University of Northampton 12680 131 11 0 3 7 15
Northumbria University 32665 78 12 0 1 4 12
Norwich University College of the Arts 1320 2 0 0 0 0 0
The Nottingham Trent University 24905 82 22 0 2 17 24
The University of Nottingham 32925 23 17 1 1 10 16
The Open University 193835 236 54 0 3 28 48
Oxford Brookes University 18615 47 9 1 2 5 9
University of Oxford 23760 73 16 0 5 7 21
University College Plymouth St Mark & St John 4080 6 1 0 0 0 1
University of Plymouth 30930 273 34 2 4 12 25
University of Portsmouth 21605 78 13 3 0 6 12
Queen Mary, University of London 14025 266 41 0 2 19 28
Ravensbourne 1465 2 0 0 0 0 0
University of Reading 15955 37 12 0 0 5 8
Roehampton University 8910 12 6 0 0 2 2
Rose Bruford College 970 2 0 0 0 0 0
Royal Academy of Music 715 0 0 0 0 0 0
Royal Agricultural College 970 0 0 0 0 0 0
Royal College of Art 990 0 0 0 0 0 0
Royal College of Music 645 8 1 0 0 0 0
Royal Holloway, University of London 8760 74 9 0 2 3 6
Royal Northern College of Music 740 17 2 0 0 0 0
The Royal Veterinary College 2005 33 1 0 0 1 1
The University of Salford 20095 494 36 1 2 18 24
School of Oriental and African Studies 4895 2 1 0 1 1 2
The School of Pharmacy 1395 6 0 0 0 0 0
Sheffield Hallam University 33830 30 16 1 1 5 10
The University of Sheffield 24715 21 3 0 1 9 11
Southampton Solent University 19255 29 6 0 0 2 3
University of Southampton 22680 20 7 0 1 2 4
St George’s, University of London 4420 7 3 1 0 4 6
St Mary’s University College 4170 19 1 0 0 1 2
Staffordshire University 16990 18 7 2 0 5 9
University Campus Suffolk 4665 2 0 0 0 0 2
University of Sunderland 20150 29 4 1 1 4 10
University of Surrey 15755 125 23 0 1 29 39
University of Sussex 12365 144 9 0 1 9 12
Swansea Metropolitan University 6030 15 3 0 0 0 2
Swansea University 18935 46 9 0 0 7 9
Teesside University 27505 20 9 0 3 5 11
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance 890 2 0 0 0 0 0
University of Wales N/A 68 12 1 0 3 10
University of Wales, Newport 9300 51 9 1 0 0 2
University of Wales Trinity Saint David 6160 49 14 1 1 4 6
University of Warwick 28435 132 33 1 1 20 30
University of West London 17110 82 21 2 4 12 23
University of the West of England, Bristol 31645 571 35 2 8 30 52
University of Westminster 23160 23 15 0 4 2 11
The University of Winchester 5905 21 1 0 0 0 1
The University of Wolverhampton 21770 94 32 3 4 8 18
University of Worcester 8320 2 1 0 0 1 3
Writtle College 1000 1 0 0 0 0 0
York St John University 6535 5 3 0 0 0 0
University of York 13490 84 14 0 1 4 7

About Paul Bradshaw

Founder of Help Me Investigate. I'm a visiting professor at City University London's School of Journalism, and run an MA in Online Journalism at Birmingham City University. I publish the Online Journalism Blog, and am the co-author of the Online Journalism Handbook and Magazine Editing (3rd edition). I have a particular interest in Freedom of Information and data journalism.
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4 Responses to University complaints – get the data

  1. Pingback: Birmingham universities are best and worst for complaints | I AM BETH ASHTON

  2. Pingback: Universities in Birmingham among best and worst in UK for complaints from … | Business Education Tips

  3. Troubled says:
    June 20, 2013 at 6:26 pm

    I noticed one rather insightful comment (by user “HEConcerns”) posted just this morning to Mr Behrens’ press-release blog^ on The Guardian website, in tandem with the release of the OIA’s Annual Report 2012 last week. When I went back to it about an hour or so later, however, to post a response, I found that the comments had been closed.

    Why is this? I think that that person made some pretty good points, and the idea that these explanations based on ‘capitalist’-type pressures could something of a diversionary tactic is something definitely worth pursuing.

    So, why would The Guardian then shut it down? Whatever happened to free speech-?

    [ ^www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-network/blog/2013/jun/13/student-complaints-rise-25-per-cent ]

    Reply
    • Paul Bradshaw says:
      June 26, 2013 at 8:05 pm

      Newspapers often close comments after a certain period because they have to manage their resources to moderate them, and after a certain amount of time a) comments may start to contribute less ‘new’ insights and b) there may be less constructive comments than in the earlier stages when people are likely to be more engaged with the subject (early adopters, if you like).

      Reply

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