Disciplinary panel member and chair training

A university can follow a fair policy and still reach an outcome that is unfair, or hard to defend, because of how the hearing itself was run.

In one case reviewed by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator, a disciplinary panel found that a student had committed sexual misconduct and ended their studies. The Adjudicator decided the process had been unfair and recommended that a fresh panel reconsider the case. The issue was not whether misconduct had occurred, but the fairness of the hearing: the student had waited around eight months to be told the details of the allegations, and had been refused legal representation at the panel even though the case was serious and the potential consequences severe. (Source: OIA case study CS022509)

The hearing is the point where the earlier work is tested, and it is the part any appeal or ombuds stage will examine most closely. If an institution has invested in trauma-informed support and in trained investigators, but the hearing and the decision are not handled to the same standard, that earlier good work may be undone. It can also cause or compound harm: when a process is trauma-informed up to the panel but not at the panel itself, it can re-traumatise the reporting party.

Why the panel matters

Panels make the most serious decisions in student casework. They decide both whether something happened and what the outcome should be, often in sensitive cases, with harassment and sexual misconduct among the most serious. A fair hearing, one that manages the perception of bias and gives everyone a proper chance to be heard, is also more likely to produce a decision that is sound and can be defended. Research on procedural justice shows that people who feel a process was fair are more likely to accept the outcome, whatever it may be. A well-run panel protects the reporting party, the responding party, and the institution.

What the training covers

We tailor the training to your own regulations, terminology, and procedures. The panel member training runs as one day, built around five sessions:

• The role of the panel: where panels sit in the process, and the frameworks that shape them.
• Fairness, bias, and procedural justice: what a fair hearing requires, and why fair process changes how outcomes are received.
• Trauma-informed panels: understanding trauma, avoiding myths, and running a hearing that does not cause further harm.
• Evidence, questioning, and consent: weighing evidence on the balance of probabilities, questioning with care, and analysing consent. This session applies relevant case law, for example how AB v University of XYZ affects decisions about whether and how the reporting party attends the hearing, so that their evidence can be tested and weighed fairly.
• Deliberation, decisions, and outcomes: reaching a defensible decision, communicating it well, and what happens after.

A realistic case study runs through the day: delegates plan a fair hearing, prepare questions, deliberate, and reach a reasoned decision, all worked from documents rather than role play.

Please note: a dedicated strand for chairs, covering meeting management and procedural decisions before and during a hearing, is still being finalised. The panel member training described on this page is available now.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the day, panel members will be able to:

• explain the panel’s role, where it sits in the disciplinary process, and the regulatory expectations that apply to it;
• apply the balance of probabilities to every decision, and avoid importing criminal standards, language, and habits;
• recognise how trauma can affect memory, behaviour, and participation, and run hearings that do not cause further harm;
• identify common myths about sexual violence, and set them aside when weighing evidence;
• weigh evidence and assess credibility and reliability, including where one account stands against another;
• analyse consent through freedom, capacity, steps taken, and reasonable belief;
• question both parties with care, using open, neutral questions free of myth-based framing;
• reach defensible decisions, record clear reasons, and decide proportionate outcomes.

Who it is for

The training is for panel members and the people who organise hearings or act as secretary to them. It works across serious student conduct, from general discipline to fitness to practise, with harassment and sexual misconduct among the most serious. Sessions can be aimed at people new to panels or used as a refresher for experienced members.

How it is delivered

• One day, 9.30am–4pm
• In person or online
• Interactive: discussion, group work, quizzes
• Case study developed across the day
• Worked from documents; no role play

Sessions are delivered in person or online, typically as one day from 09:30 to 16:00, and can be tailored to your institution. They are built around your own regulations and the framework that applies to you. A case study pack and handouts are provided, and slides and full references are shared after the day. The training is practical and based on real casework, and it aims to do more than meet the minimum the regulations require.

The case study describes an allegation of sexual assault; the day opens with a content note, and support information is provided.

This training is educational and is not legal advice, including where case law is discussed; institutions should take their own legal advice on individual cases.

Why Campus Resolve

Campus Resolve works only in higher education, and specifically in this area of casework. We work with institutions across the UK and Ireland, and ground each piece of work in the framework that applies to them. We have direct experience of regulation itself, including membership of the OIA steering group that helped develop the OIA’s new guidance on harassment and sexual misconduct, and hands-on experience of putting new regulatory requirements into practice inside an institution.

We are a small, specialist team rather than a large firm or a single consultant, so the panel training connects to the rest of the process, from prevention and support, through investigation, to the decision and any review that follows. It also draws on senior safeguarding and survivor-support experience and a track record of designing and delivering trauma-informed training for panel members, based on evidence and real casework.

Get in touch

You can contact us for a quick conversation about what you need and a no-obligation quote by emailing info@campusresolve.co.uk or by submitting the form on our contact page linked below.