‘All concerns raised by students are taken seriously and dealt with using the processes stated in our regulations,’ says law school in response
A group of students on the Legal Practice Course (LPC) at BPP University Law School have written anonymously to the university’s vice-chancellor complaining about what they term “persistent failures” with the quality of teaching and assessment during the lockdown period.
In an open letter to Professor Tim Stewart, the students outline a wide range of areas where they are dissatisfied with BPP’s handling of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These include class sizes, IT problems and lack of hard copy course materials, the latter being an issue Legal Cheek reported on last week.
“Overall, BPP University’s response to lockdown and coronavirus has only served to create an environment of mistrust and anxiety for students, severely degrade the quality of teaching and assessment, and push as many costs of adjusting to lockdown onto students,” says the letter, which already has received coverage in both The Law Society Gazette and The Lawyer.
So far the letter has received 62 anonymous signatures. Approximately 3,000 students study the LPC full and part-time each year across BPP centres nationally. This means around 2% of BPP LPC students had signed the letter at the time this story was published.
Legal Cheek understands that the group is engaging with senior members from the university and that a formal complaints procedure is due to commence.
A spokesperson for BPP said: “We cannot comment on individual complaints but confirm that all concerns raised by students are taken seriously and dealt with using the processes stated in our regulations. We understand and are sympathetic to students impacted by the disruption caused by the unprecedented nature of COVID-19.”
They continued:
“Whilst we have taken many steps to provide opportunities for students to continue to progress, if at all possible, our number one priority has been ensuring the safety of students and colleagues.”
