Policy on Policy Development

The College will from time to time create policies which will be concise formal statements of how the College will act in a particular area of its operation.

All College policies will be:

• Stored in the policy database;
• Regularly reviewed, and updated as required;
• Accessible by College staff.

Academic policies will be accessible by students via the College website.

Policy Cycle

1. Establish need – the development or revision of a College policy or procedure may result from:
   • recognition of a need
   • the regular cycle of policy review
   • gaps in current policy coverage
2. Propose Policy – research is carried out into current best practice in the sector, relevant staff are consulted, policy is drafted, Policy Owner is identified
3. Policy Development – Policy Owner reviews, consults with relevant staff, edits and finalises policy ready for endorsement
4. Committee Endorsement – Policy Owner endorses policy and passes to Approving Body
5. Policy Approval – Approving Body approves policy and policy takes effect
6. Review and Improvement – Policy Owner regularly reviews and updates policy, ensuring any amendments are endorsed and approved.

Policies

Policies are formal statements which establish the key principles that govern College decision-making processes. Policies include details of the College’s expectations and how it will act. While some policies can stand alone, others will be accompanied by associated procedures to explain how the policy will be implemented.

All College policies should:

• Be developed using the policy database;
• Accessed from the policy database;
• Have an associated procedure if required; and
• Be approved by the correct Approving Body;
• Indicate the Policy Owner;
• Be reviewed and updated at least every three years from the approval date, or more frequently if appropriate.

All members of the College community must understand their responsibilities and comply with College policies.

Procedure

A procedure provides details of the actions or steps to be taken when implementing a particular policy.

Procedures should

• Be directly linked to any relevant policy but be a separate document to the policy;
• Explain how to implement the particular policy.

Roles and Responsibilities in Policy Development

Approving Body

The Approving Body is the Board or Committee with final authority for approving all final versions of policies (whether new or amended).

Minor revisions (for example titles, formatting, typographical errors, or hyperlinks) that do not affect the principles or provisions of the policy can be made by the policy Contact Person or the policy Editor.

Policy Owner

The Policy Owner is the Board, Committee, or person who is responsible for:

• Ensuring the policy is developed in accordance with the Policy on Policy Development;
• Recommending the final version of new or amended policies for approval by the Approving Body;
• Ensuring the policy is reviewed and kept up-to-date;
• Ensuring evidence of effectiveness of the policy is collected.

Contact Person

The Contact Person is usually the Chair of the Owning Body, or their designated delegate. The Contact Person assists with the administration of a policy including:

• Answering questions on the application of the policy;
• Bringing the policy due for review to the timely attention of the Policy Owner;
• Ensuring approved major changes or revisions to the policy are made to the policy document;
• Ensuring minor revisions (for example titles, formatting, typographical errors, or hyperlinks) that do not affect the principles or provisions of the policy are made.

Editor

The Editor is the person designated to access the policy or procedure to make revisions on behalf of the Contact Person.