Customer Complaints and Feedback

We are committed to ensuring that all our customers receive the best possible service from SQA. However we recognise that, sometimes, some of our customers experience problems.

We also recognise that complaints are a valuable form of feedback on our service delivery. We use this feedback to identify the root causes of complaints and to ensure that improvements are made to our processes for the benefit of both our customers and ourselves.

These are the promises we make to all customers who raise issues with us:

• we will listen to you, and make every effort to understand the reasons for your complaint
• we will endeavour to resolve your problem at your first point of contact
• we will take ownership of your complaint to ensure resolution
• we will offer fair solutions quickly

We also welcome positive feedback from customers about our services and staff.

How to complain or give feedback to SQA

Informal procedures

If you have a named contact in SQA, make your initial complaint or give your feedback to them. If you don't have a named contact, our Customer Contact Centre will do their best to resolve your complaint there and then. Please contact them on 0845 279 1000 or by e-mail: customer@sqa.org.uk

If your complaint cannot be dealt with immediately, or if the matter you are concerned about is very serious, you should use our formal complaints procedure.

Formal procedures

Formal complaints and feedback can be made in writing, by fax or by e-mail to any member of staff. Our staff will make sure that your complaint is entered into our formal complaints process. We will acknowledge your complaint within five working days.

Our target will be to provide you with a considered response within 20 working days of receiving your complaint.

If for some reason we cannot resolve the matter within 20 working days, we will keep you informed of the delay, the reasons for it, and will give you a date by which we will be able to give a full reply.

If you are unhappy with the response we make to your formal complaint, please write, within 28 days to:

The Customer Operations Manager will review your complaint and our response to you on behalf of our Chief Executive. A reply will then be sent to you within 15 working days. In exceptional circumstances, the complaint may be referred to our Board of Management. You will be advised if this course of action is taken.

If you are still dissatisfied with our response, you can, under the terms of the Scottish Public Ombudsman Act 2002, ask the Ombudsman to look at your case. You must normally submit your request to the Ombudsman within 12 months of first raising the matter with SQA. You can contact the Scottish Public Service Ombudsman at:

Complaints about teaching, assessment and quality assurance

Complaints or feedback about the teaching, assessment and administration in a centre approved to offer our qualifications should be referred to the centre concerned, who will investigate the matter following their own complaint procedures.

If you are dissatisfied with a decision of an external assessment (examination), or with the outcome of external verification, our appeals process must be used. It can only be initiated by the Head of Centre. The procedure is explained in detail on our website: www.sqa.org.uk/appealsprocess.