The SJIB is committed to resolving appeals and aims to ensure that all its assessments and results are based on valid judgements. However, the SJIB recognises that there may be occasions when a candidate wishes to query specific points or has a genuine concern regarding the outcome of the ACA assessment. This process is dealt with under the ACA Appeals Procedure
Informal Appeal
On occasion, candidates may query the ACA results and may seek information beyond that provided within the ACA Result Notification.
Candidates who require additional feedback should submit their request to the Assessment Centre Manager within 30 working days of notification of the results of the ACA.
Feedback will be limited and given to those who have narrowly failed to pass a Section(s). It will be provided to candidate or employer by the Assessment Centre Manager who will follow SJIB Guidelines.
The Assessment Centre Manager will retain a written record/summary which will contain the following information:
- Candidate’s name
- National Insurance number
- Date the assessment was undertaken
- Nature of the query
- Feedback provided.
The SJIB will refer to the report in the event of an appeal.
If it transpires during the investigation that marking errors impacted on the final result of a section(s), the Assessment Centre Manager shall notify the SJIB of the findings in writing.
If the SJIB verifies the Assessment Centre Manager’s findings, the appropriate section(s) will be corrected and the SJIB will amend and re-issue the resulting paperwork.
In this situation there is no need for a candidate to take any further action.
Where the candidate feels that it is inappropriate to discuss the matter informally with the Assessment Centre Manager because of the nature of the grounds of appeal, the candidate may submit an appeal to the Secretary of the SJIB.
The SJIB recognises that some candidates may still wish to query specific points regarding their results and/or where they have genuine concerns about the way the Assessment was conducted. In such circumstances, they are advised to submit an appeal to the Secretary of the SJIB.
Formal Appeal
General Information
Candidates may appeal directly to the SJIB.
Appeals should be made within three months (maximum) of notification of the result of the ACA.
Candidates or employers wishing to appeal should contact the Secretary of the SJIB in writing detailing the reason(s), along with any supporting information.
Appeals will be considered where candidates believe they can show that there has been a specific breach of proper assessment practice or procedures. For example, a candidate may claim that they:
- Were not allowed the full, allocated time
- Did not have the appropriate access to the listed reference material.
- Were not assessed to the correct standard
- Were being assessed in a booth that had not been prepared correctly
- Had to use equipment that was not fit for purpose
- Felt unfairly treated by the assessor
- Felt that mitigating circumstances had not been taken into consideration.
Procedure
If the matter is not resolved informally through the Assessment Centre Manager, the candidate may make a formal appeal to the Secretary of the SJIB in writing detailing the reason for the appeal, along with any supporting information.
The SJIB will acknowledge receipt of all appeals.
Appeals will be reviewed by the Secretary of the SJIB. As part of the process, feedback from the initial request to the Assessment Centre Manager will be obtained, along with other experts and, where necessary, the candidate.
The SJIB will gather all pertinent facts in order to decide the appropriate outcome of the appeal.
The SJIB will notify the candidate of the outcome within two weeks of receipt of the appeal request.
If the decision is to amend the original assessment result, the candidate and the employer will be advised, and replacement results documentation will be issued. The decision at this stage is final.