Complaints and Academic Appeals Policy

at-Taʾṣīl (التأصيل) · Foundation Diploma in Islamic Studies · International Islamic College, Leicester

Ref: TSL-POL-006 · Version: 1.0 (draft) · Date: 7 September 2026 · Owner: Programme Lead (Ustādh Emran Ahmed) · Review: before the Programme opens, then annually.

1. Purpose

1.1 This policy explains how a student, an applicant, or the parent of a student aged under 18 can raise a complaint about the Programme, and how a student can appeal an academic decision. It sets out two routes — complaints and academic appeals — with the steps, contacts and time limits for each.

1.2 The College wants to hear when something has gone wrong. Most matters are put right quickly with a conversation. Raising a concern in good faith will never count against anyone.

2. Scope

2.1 A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction about the Programme or the College — for example teaching, organisation, communication, the venue arrangements the College has made, or the conduct of anyone acting for the College.

2.2 An academic appeal is a request to review a formal academic decision — for example a termly examination result, a coursework mark, a decision on the memorisation component, or the class of the Diploma awarded (on the procedural grounds in section 6).

2.3 Where one case contains both, the Academic Lead will confirm in writing how each part will be handled.

2.4 Safeguarding is different. A concern about the safety or welfare of any student — including anything involving a student aged 16 or 17 — is never handled as a complaint. It goes straight to the safeguarding route in the Safeguarding Policy, to Ustādh Emran Ahmed, the Programme's safeguarding lead — or, where the concern involves the lead/teacher himself, by the independent route in that policy's section 3.3: the Academic Lead's confidential contact, the Leicester City LADO (0116 454 1004), the NSPCC (0808 800 5000) or the police. If in doubt, treat it as safeguarding.

3. General principles

• 1. There is no charge for making a complaint or an appeal.
• 2. No one will suffer any detriment for raising a complaint or an appeal in good faith — not in marks, not in treatment in class, not in anything else.
• 3. Matters are handled confidentially. Information is shared only with those who need it to look into the matter and decide it.
• 4. A student may bring a friend or family member to any meeting held under this policy. A parent may act on behalf of a student aged under 18.
• 5. Time limits can be extended for good reason, such as illness. Ask as early as possible.
• 6. "Working days" means Monday to Friday, excluding UK public holidays.

4. Complaints

Step 1 — Speak to the teacher. Raise the matter first with the teacher, in person before or after a session, by phone (07436 436363) or by email (info@theiic.uk). Most concerns end here. The teacher will respond within 5 working days.

Step 2 — Formal complaint to the Academic Lead. If the matter is not resolved, or is too serious for an informal conversation, put it in writing to Shaykh ʿAbd al-Ḥaqq at-Turkmānī, Academic Lead and co-founder of the College, who is independent of the teaching of this Programme. Email info@theiic.uk with the message marked for the attention of the Academic Lead — or, where the complaint concerns the teacher, the Programme Lead or the safeguarding lead, write to the Academic Lead on his direct confidential contact, to which the teacher has no access: TBCACADEMIC-LEAD-CONFIDENTIAL-CONTACT-TBC — the Academic Lead's own email and phone, to which the teacher has no access; published in the safeguarding statement given to students and parents before the first session. Say what happened, what has already been done, and what outcome you are seeking. A formal complaint should normally be made within one month of the events concerned.

The College will:

• 1. acknowledge the complaint within 5 working days;
• 2. look into it, speaking to those involved; and
• 3. give a written outcome, with reasons, within 20 working days of receipt. If more time is genuinely needed, the College will say so and give a revised date.

The Academic Lead's decision completes the College's internal procedure.

Complaints about the Programme Lead. The teacher and the Programme Lead are the same person. A complaint about the Programme Lead himself therefore skips Step 1 and goes directly to the Academic Lead, using his direct confidential contact above — not info@theiic.uk or 07436 436363, which the Programme Lead operates.

5. Where we stand externally — stated plainly

The Foundation Diploma is the College's own award. The College is independent: the award is not a regulated qualification, is not accredited, and carries no university credit. The College is not registered with the Office for Students, so its students cannot take a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). We say this plainly because students deserve to know where they stand before they enrol.

Nothing in this policy limits anyone's legal rights. A complaint about fees, refunds, or what was promised at enrolment may be raised with Citizens Advice (citizensadvice.org.uk), or through them with Trading Standards, at any time — whether or not this procedure has been used.

6. Academic appeals

What can be appealed. An appeal may be brought on three grounds only, matching the Assessment and Award Regulations (TSL-POL-005):

• 1. Procedural defect — the Programme's published assessment arrangements were not followed, and this materially affected the decision;
• 2. New evidence — information that materially affects the decision and that could not reasonably have been provided at the time, such as illness a student was unable to disclose before an examination; or
• 3. Demonstrable bias — evidence of demonstrable bias in how the decision was reached.

What cannot be appealed. Scholarly and academic judgement is not a ground of appeal. The mark a piece of work deserves, whether a tasmīʿ passage is sound, and the class of Diploma a student's results merit are matters of judgement for the teacher under the published assessment scheme, and no reviewer will substitute their own view for it.

How to appeal. Write to the Academic Lead — info@theiic.uk, marked for his attention — within 10 working days of receiving the decision in writing, stating the ground relied on and enclosing any evidence. The College will acknowledge the appeal within 5 working days and give a written decision, with reasons, within 20 working days.

Outcomes. If the appeal is upheld, the College will put the process right in a proportionate way — for example, a fresh consideration of the decision with the defect corrected, or the chance to sit a missed paper. If it is not upheld, the student receives the reasons in writing. The Academic Lead's decision completes the College's internal procedure, and section 5 applies equally to appeals. No student will suffer any detriment for appealing.

7. Records

The College keeps a simple log of formal complaints and appeals — what was raised, when, and the outcome — separately from students' academic records. The Programme Lead maintains the log; the Academic Lead may inspect it at any time, and lessons from it are considered, in anonymised form, at the annual review of the Programme.

8. Responsibilities

• Teacher / Programme Lead (Ustādh Emran Ahmed): resolves matters informally; cooperates fully with the Academic Lead; maintains the log.
• Academic Lead (Shaykh ʿAbd al-Ḥaqq at-Turkmānī): hears formal complaints and academic appeals independently; his decisions complete the internal procedure.
• Students, applicants and parents: raise concerns promptly, honestly and with the information needed to consider them.

9. References

• Terms and Conditions of Enrolment
• Fees and Refunds Policy
• Safeguarding Policy
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Rights Act 2015; Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013

Revision history

International Islamic College, Leicester · 07436 436363 · info@theiic.uk · theiic.uk