OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY
1589 – Mitigating Circumstances Review
Concern had been growing at Oxford Brookes that the processes for applying mitigating circumstances were
not operating effectively. SUMS was asked to review these processes and compare them with good practice
elsewhere, especially ‘fit to sit’ practices. A range of stakeholders were interviewed and it was determined that
although the fundamental processes were sound, the systems supporting them created many problems. In
addition the relevant policies and their application were creating large volumes of claims. Experience elsewhere
showed that there are many arguments for adopting the ‘fit to sit’ route both from an administrative point of
view and from the perspective of student satisfaction. Adopting ‘fit to sit’ would also significantly reduce the
volume of applications and it was recommended that this be pursued prior to any system changes.
1631 – Review of Project Management Training
Oxford Brookes was looking to enhance their project management training. SUMS looked at provision
of training and experience elsewhere and informed the development of a framework, not just for provision
of future training, but also for supporting its translation into competence in practice.
1642 – Legal Services Review
Oxford Brookes had carried out extensive internal research on the operation of its Legal Services and its
associated strengths and weaknesses. They had also developed some guiding principles for the provision
of Legal Services. SUMS explored models in use elsewhere in the sector. There are several models in use and
each has strengths and weaknesses. The attributes of the main models were identified and scored against
Oxford Brookes’ guiding principles to help develop a way forward.
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SUMS Consulting Annual Review 2016