KCL has created a process specifically for students to claim compensation for the learning that has been lost to industrial action. You can read KCL's official guidance on how to claim here.

 

This guidance can seem daunting, so we’ve broken it down into simple step-by-step instructions below. Each student must submit their own claim, but as this is a coordinated effort, we will work together to provide support to each other as we move forward with our claims. If you have any questions, the Reimbursement Now! campaign team are here to help.

 

Stage 1: Prepare Your Information

To make your claim for compensation as quick and easy as possible, you will need to have the following information.

 

• A list of all of your timetabled sessions (lectures, seminars, workshops etc.) that were cancelled due to industrial action and their corresponding module codes. The dates impacted by UCU strikes were as follows: 

   

  Term 1:

  3 days - 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd December 2021

   

  Term 2:

  First week: 5 days - Monday 14^th to Friday 18^th February

  Second week: 2 days - Monday 21^st and Tuesday 22^nd February

  Third week: 3 days - Monday 28^th February to Wednesday 2^nd March

  Fourth week: 5 days - Monday 28^th March to Friday 1^st April

 

• If any replacements or mitigations were put in place by the department (e.g. replacement sessions or additional learning materials), you should get together a list of what these were and your arguments for why you feel they were insufficient.

 

• If you have personal circumstances that you feel worsened the impact of the industrial action on your learning, such as a King's Inclusion Plan or extenuating circumstances, you can provide evidence of this to strengthen your case.

 

Stage 2: Formal Investigation

You must complete this step after the strike action you are complaining about has ended and before the 1st July  2022 (this is the deadline imposed by King's for complaints relating to industrial action disruption in Terms 1 and 2).

 

• You will need to log into your King’s account and complete this webform to submit a formal complaint. You should fill this out in your own words and try to give as much specific detail as possible to support your claim, including evidence of any mitigations that your course or department have put in place and why you think this has been inadequate.

 

• Where it asks your desired outcome (Question 13), we suggest that students should figure out what percentage of their teaching hours have been lost and ask for that percentage of their tuition fees to be reimbursed. For example, if you have lost all of your teaching across the 4 weeks of strikes and you would usually have 2 terms of 10 weeks in this academic year, you have lost 20% of your teaching. If only some of your classes were cancelled, try to figure out what percentage of your overall teaching was lost and request this amount. Note: We can’t guarantee that the University will agree to provide this level of compensation.

 

• You should receive a decision from King’s Student Conduct and Appeals team within 25 days of submitting your Stage 2 complaint. It’s possible that some of you will receive a tuition fee reimbursement at this stage.

 

• Note: Any reimbursement will be sent to your original payment method (so if you have a student loan it will be repaid to the Student Loan Company). That being said, this equates to potentially thousands of pounds that you won’t have to repay over time and that makes a difference in your quality of life in the future. Who wants to pay for something that they never received?

 

Stage 3: Appeal via KCL

If you are not satisfied with your Stage 2 resolution, either because they have refused your claim or because they have reimbursed less than you believe to be fair, you can proceed to the appeal stage.

 

• To submit a Stage Three Appeal, a Complaint Appeal Form must be completed and submitted to Student Conduct & Appeals within 10 working days of the date of the Stage Two Complaint outcome letter.

 

• The Vice-Principal (Education) will determine whether the criteria for an appeal have been met. Where they have, an Appeal Committee will be convened; otherwise, the appeal will be dismissed. This decision will normally be communicated within 20 working days of receipt of the Stage Three Complaint.

 

• Where an Appeal Committee is convened, the student shall normally receive at least 7 days' notice of the hearing and will be invited to present their case to the Panel.  The Committee will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to challenge the decision arrived at during Stage 2; where it concludes such evidence is present, it will make a judgment on the complaint, and make appropriate proposals or recommendations to resolve the complaint.  The decision of the Committee will normally be communicated to the student and appropriate staff within 14 days of the decision.

 

• Note: As this is a mass effort, we will support each other through the appeals process if necessary, so let our campaign team know if you get to this stage.

 

Stage 4: Independent Adjudicator

If all internal procedures are complete (i.e. when stages 1, 2 and 3 above have been completed) and you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of the appeal, you may request an independent review by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education ('OIA').

 

• Students can request this independent review via the OIA website.

 

• You need to submit a completed OIA Complaint Form within 12 months of the date of the University’s final decision (usually the date of the Completion of Procedures Letter), and you will normally need to send in your Completion of Procedures Letter – so make sure you keep this.

 

Additional Support

 

If you need specific advice or support relating to your individual circumstances, or you have any trouble completing the complaints process, you can access the KCLSU Advice service here.

 

Join the Campaign

 

Get connected with other students going through this process by following our campaign social media accounts below.

Instagram: @reimbursement_now_kcl

Reimbursement Now! Facebook Page.

Reimbursement Now! Whatsapp Chat.

You can also email the campaign team here and sign up for email updates here.