My RLSS UK

Welcome to My RLSS UK, an online area dedicated to providing our qualification holders, members, stakeholders, and supporters with easy access to the latest industry safety guidance, policies, resources, and opportunities. As well as providing specialist information, the area signposts you to relevant services and features within your RLSS UK Account (powered by tahdah). 

Every individual, organisation, club, branch, and group in our community is invaluable to us, and we endeavour to provide solutions and added value wherever possible in the hope that you will become a lifelong ambassador of the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK). Together we can work towards the Charity's mission to be the leader in lifesaving and lifeguarding in the UK and Ireland. By sharing our combined expertise and knowledge, with as many people as possible, we can provide everyone with the potential to save lives and enjoy water safely. 

We hope you find the area useful, if you require further support please call 0300 323 0096 or email [email protected]. 

Contents


Introduction

This policy sets out RLSS UK Qualifications procedures and approach to submitting and considering appeals, to ensure that all outcomes are fair, consistent, reliable and are based on the valid judgements of the assessor or RLSS UK Qualification staff and uses the assessment criteria for the qualification in question.

RLSS UK Qualifications Approved Training Centres/Providers (ATC/Ps) must also operate an effective and appropriate appeals process for the benefit of its candidates.


Scope

This policy applies to all RLSS UK Qualifications candidates who are currently enrolled on or have completed one or more of our qualifications. This policy also applies to our ATC/Ps, delivering our regulated or non-regulated qualifications.

Appeals may be made in relation to:-

  • The results of assessments
  • Decisions regarding Reasonable Adjustments and Special Considerations
  • Decisions relating to any action to be taken against a candidate or an ATC/P, after an investigation into malpractice or maladministration
  • Where evidence suggests RLSS UK Qualifications did not apply procedures consistently, or that procedures were not followed properly and fairly
  • The results following an External Quality Assurance audit

Principles of making an Appeal

If a candidate is unhappy about the assessment decision awarded to them, they must first go through the ATC/P’s appeals process prior to contacting us. As part of our agreement with ATC/Ps, they must all operate an appeal process for candidates.

Candidates who wish to appeal about their assessment results should either be supported by their trainer or should have exhausted the ATC/P’s own appeals process, before appealing to RLSS UK Qualifications. In the latter case, candidates must provide us with evidence that they have first appealed to the ATC/P.


How to Appeal

Appeals should be made in writing via email within 10 working days of the assessment, or within seven working days of an unsatisfactory outcome from an appeal to an ATC/P or from an unsatisfactory outcome from a decision provided by the RLSS UK Qualifications.

The appeal must include as much detail as possible including where relevant:

  • Candidate’s name and contact details
  • Qualification
  • Reason for the appeal, e.g., special consideration, assessment results
  • Venue name and society number
  • Trainer’s name and society number
  • Assessor’s name and society number 
  • Names of others involved
  • Details around the grounds for appeal
  • Copies of any supporting evidence

 If the appeal is excessively long or complex, we may ask you to provide a summary so that we are clear what the issues are. 


Situations brought to our attention by other Awarding Organisations and Regulatory Authorities

Where the regulators notify us of failures that have been discovered in the assessment processes of another awarding organisation (AO), we will conduct a risk assessment as to the likelihood of a similar failure occurring, and the potential effect on RLSS UK Qualifications own assessment processes, then immediately make arrangements to minimise or remove risks where appropriate.


What will happen to my appeal?

All appeals will be logged as soon as they are received and assigned to a member of the Compliance Team, who will start the initial investigation.

Where possible, we will undertake an initial, informal assessment of all potential appeals, to ensure the application is complete and to ascertain if the issue can be resolved before it goes to a formal appeal. We may do so over the telephone or via email. In all instances, we will ensure that the person carrying out this initial check does not have a personal interest in the decision being appealed. All actions will be confirmed via email.

Sometimes a more formal approach is required, in such cases we ask that your put in writing details of your appeal by email [email protected].

If the appeal cannot be put in writing, a member of the Compliance Team will relay any verbal conversation via email to ensure the details around the appeal have been understood. 

All appeals will be acknowledged within three working days, investigated, and a response provided within 10 working days. Please note that in some cases, the timescales may be longer, e.g., if an ATC/P visit is required. In such instances, we will contact all parties concerned to inform them of the likely revised timescale.

If the appeal is from a candidate who has exhausted the ATC/P’s own appeals procedure, we will contact the ATC/P Co-ordinator for the outcome of the appeal.

We will endeavour to complete any appeals investigation within 10 working days of the receipt of the initial written appeal. To ensure a fair and thorough investigation, the duration may depend on the nature and severity of the appeal received, and the investigating team member will notify the appellant as soon as possible, if the investigation will take longer than expected. 

If your appeal is not upheld, we will explain why.


Appeals against RLSS UK Qualifications

If you are not happy with the way your appeal has been handled or the outcome of our investigation, you can refer your grievance to the Compliance Team. In such cases, this must be put in writing within seven working days of receipt of our initial decision.

This appeal will be acknowledged within three working days and allocated to an independent staff member with a manager title or higher with the appropriate competence to review. Only the original appeal and your dissatisfaction with how it was handled will be reviewed. Further consideration of your appeal will only be made if the review considers the appeal was not handled according to our procedures or failed to consider critical evidence. 

Any decisions made at this stage will be signed off by said member and communicated in writing within five working days.

If you are still dissatisfied with the way your appeal was reviewed or feel we have still failed to take into account critical evidence, you can further refer your grievance to the Compliance Manager. In such cases, this must be put in writing within seven working days of receipt of the reviewed decision.

Your case will be passed over to an appeal panel, who will consist of a minimum of two people and have at least one person from outside of our AO. This person will not have a personal interest in the decision being appealed and will have appropriate competence. For all appeals that are presented to an appeal panel a fee will be charged as detailed below.

Only details from the original appeal and the reviewed appeal and your dissatisfaction with how the appeal was handled will be passed over to the panel for review within five working days of receipt of your 2nd appeal.  Only the original appeal and the reviewed appeal and your dissatisfaction with how the appeal was handled will be reviewed along with our qualification documents. Further consideration of your appeal will only be made if the review considers the complaint was not handled according to RLSS UK Qualifications procedures or failed to consider critical evidence.

All appeals that are sent to an appeal panel will be investigated, and a response provided within 15 working days. Please note that in some cases, the review processes may take longer, e.g., if the appeal panel requests further information. In such instances, we will contact all parties concerned to inform them of the likely revised timescale.

Any decisions made by the appeal panel will usually be communicated via email by the Compliance Manager. This will be the final decision and the appeal will be closed. 


Where an appeal is upheld 

In situations where an appeal has been upheld, RLSS UK Qualifications will give due consideration to the outcome and will, as appropriate, take actions such as:

  • Amend the record of the Candidate(s)/ATC/Ps concerned.
  • Identify any other candidates who may have been affected and correct or, where it cannot be corrected, mitigate as far as possible the effects of any finding. 

RLSS UK Qualifications will review the findings of an any appeal which is upheld to determine whether our policies and procedures need amending. 


What to do if you are not satisfied with the outcome

If the RLSS UK Qualifications’ appeals procedure has been exhausted and you are not satisfied with the outcome, the complaints process of the relevant regulatory body may be followed:

England  Ofqual Complaints procedure - Ofqual - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Wales Qualifications Wales [email protected]
Ireland CCEA [email protected]


Fees

Where an appeal is being put forward to an Appeals Panel, RLSS UK Qualifications will charge the following prior to the appeal being heard:

Fees are invoiced as follows:

  • ATC/Ps /TA’s Fee: £100 per cohort
  • Candidate Fee: £50 per appeal

Where an appeal is upheld, the fee will be refunded to the candidate or ATC/P within 14 working days. If an appeal is not upheld there will be no refund of this fee.


Confidentiality

 To enable a full investigation to take place around the appeal, it will be necessary for the candidate to provide their name and contact details. This information is needed to enable us to request any relevant documents or witness statements relating to the appeal.

There may be situations where we have a duty to disclose your identity, for example to:

  • The police, fraud prevention agencies or other law enforcement agencies
  • The courts
  • Relevant authorities where there are safeguarding concerns 
  • RLSS UK Qualifications as part of any investigations into issues around qualification delivery 
  • Other third parties, e.g., Regulators, Independent appeals panel outside the society.

Contact Details

Contact Details

Last updated: June 2023