The Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors Pty Ltd (“the Institute”) is committed to developing and maintaining an effective, timely, fair and equitable grievance handling system which is easily accessible.
Complaints
For the purpose of this policy and procedure, a complaint can be submitted by a student enrolled or a person seeking to enrol at AIPC to express dissatisfaction with any aspect of the Institute’s services and activities. The complaint may be an expression of dissatisfaction with, but not limited to:
- The enrolment, induction/orientation process;
- The quality of education provided;
- The quality of support services provided
- Academic matters including student progress, assessment, curriculum and awards in a course of study;
- Handling of personal information and access to personal records;
- The way someone has been treated;
- Interactions with an AIPC-approved education agent; and
- Interactions with any AIPC-preferred services partner.
At any time during the process, the student can seek independent professional advice and/or have another person or third party communicate or advocate on their behalf. Confirmation from the student that another person or third party is communicating or acting on their behalf is required in writing.
Before an Issue Becomes a Formal Complaint
The Institute strives to deal with complaints as soon as they emerge to avoid further disruption or the need for a formal complaint.
In the first instance, students who are dissatisfied with an Institute service or activity are encouraged to speak immediately with Student Support Staff or an Academic staff member to resolve the issue. Please note that it is not mandatory for complainants to raise a complaint informally.
Procedure
The complaints and appeals procedure can be used by complainants to submit a complaint of an academic or non-academic nature. Complaints of an academic nature include issues related to assessment; awards in a course of study; curriculum; and student progress. Complaints of a non-academic nature cover all other matters, including complaints in relation to personal information that the Institute holds in relation to a student.
During all stages of this procedure the Institute will take all steps to ensure that:
- the complainant and any respondent will not be victimised or discriminated against;
- the complainant has an opportunity to formally present their case and each party to a complaint may be accompanied and assisted by a support person at any relevant meetings;
- a full explanation in writing for decisions and actions taken as part of the process will be provided to both the complainant and respondent;
- where the internal or external complaint handling or appeal process results in a decision that supports the complainant, the Institute will immediately implement any decision and/or corrective and preventative action required and advise the complainant of the outcome; and
- there is no cost to the complainant to utilise Stage One or Stage Two of this procedure.
Stage One - Appeals Against an Assessment Result
Students should initially contact their Lecturer and seek further information regarding the reason for their assessment result. If not satisfied with this process, they then can appeal against their results within 28 days from issue of the result. The appeal should be forwarded in writing with a copy of the completed assessment/s including the Lecturer’s assessment comments to:
Diploma of Counselling Practice
Course Leader, DCP
Emailed to karen.kim@aipc.net.au
Bachelor of Counselling
Course Coordinator, Bachelor Program
Emailed to thomas@aipc.net.au
Master of Counselling
Course Coordinator, Master Program
Emailed to karenne@aipc.net.au
Upon receipt, the Course Coordinator will review the result and notify the student in writing of the outcome, including reasons for the decision, within 10 working days of receipt of the appeal. If the assessment was originally marked by the Course Coordinator, the assessment is to be independently reviewed by another academic staff member not involved in the original marking of the assessment.
If the student is not satisfied with the decision of the Course Coordinator, they may then appeal the decision to the Program Leader by forwarding a copy of the completed assessment/s including the Lecturer’s assessment comments and the Course Coordinator’s decision to:
Diploma of Counselling Practice Students:
AIPC Head Office
Education Manager
Locked Bag 15
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006, or
Emailed to hayley@aipc.net.au
Bachelor, Master Students:
AIPC Head Office
Program Leader
Locked Bag 15
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006, or
Emailed to michael@aipc.net.au
The Program Leader is to respond in writing within 10 working days. If the student is still not satisfied with the decision of the Program Leader, they may then appeal the decision as described in Stage 2 below.
Stage One - All other Formal Complaints
The following procedure can be utilised by complainants to submit a complaint of an academic or non-academic nature. Complaints of an academic nature include matters related to student progress, assessment, curriculum and awards in a course of study. Complaints of a non-academic nature include all other matters. Students who wish to appeal an assessment result should use the procedure outlined above in lieu of the information below.
Formal complaints must be submitted in writing to the Provost.
The address to send this correspondence is:
AIPC Provost
Locked Bag 15
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
Emailed to christy.collis@aipc.net.au
Receipt of the complaint will be acknowledged in writing within seven (7) days. The complaint handling process will commence within ten (10) working days of the receipt of the formal complaint and all reasonable measures will be taken to finalise the process as soon as practicable.
The AIPC Provost, or their nominee, (who must be independent of the complaint) will then assess the complaint; determine the outcome; and provide a written response to the complainant, including detailed reasons for their decision, within twenty-eight (28) working days.
The complainant will be advised of their right to access Stage Two of this procedure if they are not satisfied with the outcome of Stage One.
Stage Two – Appeal Against Complaint or Review Outcome
If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of Stage One, they may lodge an appeal in writing to the AIPC Chief Executive Officer within twenty (20) working days of receiving notice of the outcome of their Stage One complaint or appeal.
Appeal Against Assessment Result
AIPC Provost
c/- AIPC Head Office
Locked Bag 15
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
Or christy.collis@aipc.net.au
All Other Appeals
Chief Executive Officer
c/- AIPC Head Office
Locked Bag 15
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
Or sandra@aipc.net.au
Receipt of the complaint will be acknowledged in writing withing seven (7) days. The assessment of the Stage Two appeal will commence within ten (10) working days of being received. The complainant will be advised in writing the outcome of their Stage Two appeal, including detailed reasons for the decision, within twenty-eight (28) days of lodgement of the appeal.
The complainant will be advised of their right to access Stage Three of this procedure if they consider the matter unresolved.
Stage Three – External Review
If the complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of Stage Two, they may lodge an external appeal to Resolution Institute, an association offering dispute resolution services, within 20 working days of receiving notice of the outcome of their appeal.
Contact Details for Resolution Institute:
Suite 602, Level 6
Tower B, Zenith Centre
821–843 Pacific Highway
Chatswood NSW 2067
PO Box 440
Chatswood NSW 2057
Ph: 1800 651 650 Fax: (02) 9251 3733
Email: infoaus@resolution.institute
Website: www.resolution.institute
Complainants who wish to lodge an external appeal can contact Resolution Institute and request details of a suitable Mediator. Resolution Institute have a free referral service to a Mediator and the Mediator will charge a fee for the first four hours of their services, with an hourly rate applying thereafter. 50% of the fee will be borne by the Institute and 50% by the student.
The Institute agrees to participate in good faith in the mediation process and be bound by the external Mediator’s recommendations. The Chief Executive Officer ensures any recommendations made are implemented within thirty (30) days of receipt of the report from the external Mediator.
If the complaint remains unresolved after the external dispute resolution process, the complainant may decide to refer the matter to an external agency such as the Anti-Discrimination Commission, Office of Fair Trading or other bodies as appropriate.
Record Keeping and Confidentiality
Records of all complaints responded to under this procedure and their outcomes shall be maintained for a period of at least five years to allow all parties to the complaint appropriate access to these records, upon written request to the Chief Executive Officer. These records will be maintained at AIPC Head Office, 47 Baxter Street, Fortitude Valley, Qld, 4006.
All records relating to complaints will be treated as confidential and will be covered by AIPC’s Privacy and Personal Information Policy.
Additional Information
Nothing in this Complaints and Appeals Policy limits the rights of students or persons seeking to enrol with the Institute to act under Australia's Consumer Protection laws. The procedures set out in this document do not replace or modify procedures or any other responsibilities which may arise under other higher education provider policies or under statute or any other law. Also, these dispute resolution procedures do not circumscribe an individual's rights to pursue other legal remedies.
Approval and Training
This Policy and Procedure was agreed to and ratified by the AIPC Governing Board of The Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors Pty Ltd 29 August 2022. This Policy and Procedure is included in the Student Handbook and is available for all students on the Institute’s website at www.aipc.net.au.
For the purposes of communicating to and training staff, this Policy and Procedure is included in the Policies and Procedures suite and is covered during the staff induction process.
Procedure for Processing Complaints or Appeals
Upon receipt, the receiving party will process the complaint or appeal as follows:
- Accumulate all relevant documentation to investigate the complaint or appeal such as assessment results, assessment item, student record/file, etc.
- In the event of an appeal, talk with the Unit Facilitator to gather information on why the assessment decision or action was taken.
- In the event of a grievance or complaint, talk with academic or administrative staff to gather information on what happened or the basis of the decision.
- Grievances/Complaints - once the information is gathered, consultation will occur between the Provost Manager and respective Course Leader to determine how the grievance/complaint will be resolved.
- Appeals – the respective Course Leader will review the assessment decision and the appeal.
- The student is responded to in writing. This response is to include reasons as to why the decision has been made.
- All complaints and appeals are logged and kept in a central file.
Complaints and appeals and their responses will be reviewed by the AIPC Academic Board at their next meeting.
Students who are not satisfied with the written response are able to write to the Chief Executive Officer for review of the decision. Upon receipt, the Chief Executive Officer will:
- Gather information on the student’s situation.
- Decide on how to resolve the situation with the student.
- Respond to the student in writing, stating the decision and reasons for the decision, within 28 days.
Complaints and their responses will be reviewed by the AIPC Academic Board at their next meeting to inform decision-making on identified systemic issues.
As detailed in the Policies above, students can seek mediation/resolution through external avenues. AIPC management and academic staff will participate willingly as required in these external avenues to reach successful resolution of the matter.