English and Welsh universities paid out a record amount of compensation following complaints from students to the sector ombudsman last year, but three providers have been named and shamed for failing to comply with recommendations.

Nearly ?2.5 million was awarded in 2024, according to the annual report of the Office for the Independent Adjudicator (OIA), more than double the ?1.2 million seen in 2023 and the highest amount ever awarded in a single year.

Students can take complaints to the body if they are unhappy with the way they have been dealt with by an institution¡¯s own processes. Last year was the ninth consecutive year of rising grievances considered by the OIA,?increasing 15 per cent to 3,613.

The highest amount of financial compensation a university paid out in a single case dealt with by the OIA totalled ?63,650, and some 143 students received amounts of ?5,000 or more. Of these, 74 received ?10,000 or more.

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The OIA report says that these larger settlements were agreed when there had been ¡°serious disruption¡± to a student¡¯s studies for a prolonged period, or ¡°where a provider¡¯s actions had led to the student being unable to complete the qualification which they were studying for¡±.

In some cases, they reflected the high costs paid by international students, including large amounts of tuition fees and visa costs.

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An OIA spokesperson said there was no single reason for the rise but a ¡°significant portion of the financial remedies was awarded due to students being given incorrect or misleading information about a course before they started, such as incorrect information about tuition fees or whether the course was accredited by a professional regulatory body. Another substantial amount of the total can be attributed to delays¡±.

The three institutions named in the report for refusing to comply with recommendations made about complaints were the London Bridge Business Academy (LBBA), New College, Durham and the Applied Business Academy (ABA).

The OIA upheld a complaint from a student removed from their course at the LBBA?owing to concerns about the fairness of the process and said they should be reinstated. The provider was said to have not accepted this position, and ¡°correspondence has not been productive¡±.

At New College, Durham, the OIA recommended a panel reconsider a student¡¯s case afresh but the college said this could not happen ¡°due to concerns about staff welfare¡±.

ABA closed its higher education courses while a complaint was being dealt with and hasn¡¯t paid the ?500 the OIA awarded to a student who was found to have been wrongfully removed from their studies.

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They are the first instances of non-compliance since Clare College, Cambridge in 2021, which refused to pay a student after it suspended them from the college. There have been five further non-compliance reports in the past but never three in a single year previously.

Complaints regarding academic appeals were again the largest category last year but 78 per cent of these cases were not found to be justified.

The OIA report says that some students who ¡°might otherwise have accepted an outcome from their provider¡± are ¡°motivated to complain to us by a perceived lack of humanity and compassion in the provider¡¯s response¡±, adding that students additionally complain when ¡°inaccuracies in the provider¡¯s correspondence undermine their confidence that their circumstances have been carefully considered¡±.

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The OIA report also shows that the number of complaints made by disabled students rose from about one-third of its total caseload in 2023, to just over 40 per cent last year.

Of those who specified their disability, 46 per cent said they had mental health issues. This was followed by those who said they had learning differences, standing at 33 per cent. Just under 40 per cent indicated that they were affected by more than one condition.

While the OIA report says ¡°it is not our role to make findings about the actions of individual members of staff working at providers¡± and ¡°we are concerned that in some instances, there is no culture of accountability in place to ensure that disabled students receive the support that is necessary to place them on an equal footing for success with their peers¡±.

It adds that it is also concerned about the ¡°resourcing of support for disabled students in the context of wider financial pressure¡± and delays in the disabled students¡¯ allowance system.

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juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com