Oliver Todd reports for the University of York’s York Vision on accusations of racial abuse and mishandling of student complaints at the Uni:

Tutors in a number of departments have been criticised for the way they have addressed cases of vulnerable students, the year after York saw a huge increase in the number of complaints dealt with by senior management at the University.

One ex-student, who claims to have been subject to racial defamatory statements by University staff, told Vision: “It’s like the University has attempted to sweep the complaint under the rug”. The ex-student in question is now pursuing a personal injury claim against the University for the emotional trauma she has received as a result of the alleged abuse and told Vision that the investigation was carried out by a senior member of staff with no previous experience in dealing with such issues.

In a statement, the University of York said: “The complaint has been dealt with exhaustively by the University’s Registrar and at the Appeals stage by a Pro-Vice-Chancellor who has many decades of senior management experience in the University. We have also benefited from legal advice on this matter and are confident the right decisions have been made.”

Full story here.