To whom Higher Education students on University of Sunderland franchised courses initially complain depends on who is providing the service you are complaining about.
If the service is provided by East Durham College, then you must first exhaust the complaints procedure of the College, in accordance with the standard complaints procedure.
Complaints about issues not relevant to the University’s provision, including non academic matters, will be managed solely by the College.
Unresolved complaints about services provided by the College (that are relevant to the University’s provision) may be referred to the University once the College’s complaints procedure has been fully exhausted.
Any such complaints would then enter the University’s complaints procedure at Stage 2: Complaint Review.
The purpose of the Review is not to re-investigate a complaint but to ensure that procedures were followed at the initial investigation stage. If the service is provided directly by the University, then the University’s Student Complaints Procedure should be used from the outset.
You can find full details of the University’s Student Complaints Procedure in the University Student Handbook or at https://my.sunderland.ac.uk/display/SH/Student+Complaints
You can also find details of East Durham College's Complaints Procedure at Complaints | East Durham College (edc.ac.uk)
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