Wanted: Head of Student Casework

This role will lead and manage the Student Casework office dealing with the management of all student casework, including appeals, complaints, misconduct and disciplinary cases. The postholder will lead the development of a customer‑focused and learning culture for student casework across GBS. They will be the primary contact with the Office of the Independent Adjudicator and responsible for ensuring that GBS closes all cases within the timeframes laid out by the OIA and GBS or relevant partner regulations.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the development and implementation of a student‑focused policy framework for student casework, which delivers fair, transparent and robust outcomes.
• Oversee the operation of the student complaints, conduct and appeals processes ensuring that relevant GBS and Partner regulations and policies are followed and that casework is dealt with promptly and with sensitivity.
• Oversee the development of a consistent academic appeals framework across GBS, aligning to relevant Partner regulations.
• Develop and maintain regulation, policies and procedures in respect of student casework.
• Oversee the operation of the student conduct, disciplinary and fitness to practice policies and processes ensuring that the regulations and policies are followed and that investigations are fully documented and outcomes are clear.
• Liaise with GBS’ OIA Point of Contact on all cases, providing information requested, representing GBS’ best interests and resolving cases as quickly as possible.
• Advise the senior leadership on any issues arising from cases and potential exposure.
• Liaise where necessary with the Legal, Governance and other relevant teams on potential claims against GBS, exercising judgement as to when they should be involved.
• Ensure that records of all cases are maintained and kept up to date on shared and secure storage locations.
• Act as a source of advice and guidance for staff across GBS and promote the work of the office through briefings and meetings with professional service and academic staff.

Essential Skills And Experience

• Degree‑level education or equivalent experience in a relevant field.
• Experience in handling casework or administration processes in complex organisations, preferably in Higher Education.
• Experience of directing complex, sensitive and high‑stakes cases, requiring tact and discretion.
• Proven track record in delivering administrative tasks across diverse teams.
• Strong people management and interpersonal skills, including performance oversight.
• Excellent planning, prioritisation and communication skills.
• Ability to write clear and concise reports and outcomes conveying complex issues to a variety of audiences.

Key Result Areas

• Operational Excellence: Delivering effective processes and systems that support robust investigations and casework.
• Compliance: Full adherence to GBS, partner and OIA expectations for student casework handling.
• Policy development: Develop and keep under review the end‑to‑end policy framework for student casework.

Other Information

• Commitment to GBS values and regulations, including equal opportunities policy.
• Commitment to GBS’s Social, Economic and Environmental responsibilities and minimising environmental impact in the performance of the role, and actively contributing to the delivery of GBS’s Environmental Policy.
• Commitment to Health and Safety responsibilities to ensure a safe and secure working environment for staff, students and other visitors to the campus.

What We Offer

• 25 days annual leave, plus 8 public holidays.
• 1‑day extra leave per year of service, up to a maximum of 5 days.
• Workplace pension scheme.
• Tuition reimbursement for career development courses.
• Flexible Benefits: Cycle to Work, Workplace Nursery, Tech scheme and much more.
• Perks@Work discounts platform, wellbeing centre and much more.
• Reward and recognition programme.
• £500 award employee referral scheme.
• Discretionary annual performance bonus.

GBS is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and providing a workplace free from discrimination or harassment. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and communities. We take our core values seriously and work hard to create an environment where everyone feels welcomed.