Categories of acceptable and unacceptable Extenuating Circumstances and evidence
Primary page content
For use with:
- Regulations for Taught Programmes: 3.3 Extenuating Circumstances
- Regulations for Research Programmes: 4.2 Extenuating Circumstances
Download the information on this page in a table:
Categories of Extenuating Circumstances and evidence (PDF)
Serious medical condition
- Serious personal injury or medical condition, normally occurring for the first time, preventing attendance or completion of assessment or submission of work
- Serious injury or illness of a child, partner or close relative (parent) but not extended family
- Serious worsening or acute episode of pre-existing and ongoing medical condition or physical disability
- Ongoing medical conditions, disabilities, learning difficulties or mental health conditions
- Minor illnesses or injuries (such as colds, headaches, hay fever)
- Normal pregnancy
- Stress-related to undertaking assessment including written examinations
Bereavement
Trauma
- Victim of serious crime (e.g. rape, assault, mugging)
- Theft of work required for assessment
- Direct experience of a terrorist incident or natural disaster
- Major fire in a residence
- Family breakdown (such as the divorce of parents or student's relationship, but not extended family)
- Enforced eviction from housing
- Minor crime
- Financial problems or employment issues
- Minor accommodation problems or choosing to move house
- General domestic/family problems
Racial Trauma
Racial trauma, or race-based traumatic stress (RBTS), refers to the mental and emotional injury caused by encounters with racial bias and ethnic discrimination, racism, and hate crimes.
Caring Responsibilities
- Unexpected caring responsibilities caused by sudden death or illness or worsening of ongoing medical condition to child, partner or close relative
Court Attendance
Miscellaneous
- Any circumstances which have not clearly impacted on academic performance or do not clearly relate to the timing of the assessment
- Visa problems
- Misjudging preparation or revision time
- Misreading the timetable
- Multiple assessments required in a short period of time
- Private or public transport failure, holidays or booked travel arrangements, attendance at family occasions such as weddings