BRITISH SCHOOL OF MARKETING INTERNATIONAL

STUDENT ATTENDANCE POLICY

Every BSMI student is expected to attend all timetabled sessions and engage fully with their course. BSMI monitors attendance from before arrival to the end of the course, supports students who fall behind, and meets its legal duties as a licensed student sponsor.

1. Purpose and scope

1.1 This policy applies to every student enrolled at British School of Marketing International (BSMI): English language, pre-sessional English, International Foundation, ATHE, BTEC, pre-Masters and any higher education course.

1.2 The same attendance and engagement expectations apply to all students. Students studying on a Student visa sponsored by BSMI (“sponsored students”) are also covered by the additional UKVI duties in sections 4, 5 and 11.

1.3 BSMI monitors attendance and engagement because:

• regular attendance is the strongest early sign of whether a student will progress and succeed, and lets staff offer support before problems grow
• as a licensed student sponsor, BSMI must monitor sponsored students’ attendance and engagement, keep records and report to UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)
• BSMI must show its regulators and accrediting bodies (the Office for Students, the Independent Schools Inspectorate and the British Council) that students receive the support they need to engage and complete their courses
• BSMI has a duty of care for the welfare of all students, especially those under 18

1.4 Students agree to this policy when they sign the Student Learning Agreement, which is sent to them before arrival (section 4). The policy is also explained at induction and in the Student Handbook.

2. Definitions

3. Roles and responsibilities

4. Admissions, CAS assessment and pre-arrival

BSMI assigns a CAS only after it has checked every entry requirement, assessed the student’s suitability for their chosen course, and recorded the evidence in a CAS Enrolment Statement that UKVI can review.

4.1 Applications. Students apply to BSMI directly or through an approved agent. Admissions registers every application on the BSMI portal.

4.2 Eligibility and suitability checks. Admissions checks each item on the CAS checklist below. For each item, the assessor ticks the checklist and writes a rationale explaining why the evidence shows that the student is eligible and suitable for their chosen course.

4.3 Pre-CAS questionnaire. When the documents meet all the requirements, BSMI sends the student a Pre-CAS questionnaire. It asks detailed questions about the student’s finances, chosen course and progression plans. Admissions checks the answers against the documents and follows up any inconsistency.

4.4 Credibility interview. The final stage is a face-to-face or online interview attended by two members of staff. It is recorded as audio and video, and a written transcript is saved as a PDF. Both members of staff write comments on the student’s eligibility and suitability to study in the UK. If either has concerns, the Senior Academic Manager reviews the case before any decision is made.

4.5 CAS Enrolment Statement. The completed checklist and rationales automatically generate a CAS Enrolment Statement. It lists every document BSMI reviewed to assess the student’s suitability for their chosen course and includes a link to the PDF of the credibility interview, for UKVI’s review.

4.6 Assigning the CAS. The CAS is assigned only when every requirement above is met and the Student Learning Agreement has been signed (4.10). It is issued together with the CAS Enrolment Statement. If any requirement is not met, BSMI does not assign a CAS and tells the student or agent why.

4.7 Records and inspection. The checklist, rationales, questionnaire, interview recording, transcript and CAS Enrolment Statement are kept in the student file (section 5.4). Examples of the Pre-CAS questionnaire, the credibility interview form and the CAS Enrolment Statement are available to UKVI and other inspectors on request.

4.8 Before arrival. Once the CAS is assigned, the pre-arrival steps below apply.

4.9 Pre-arrival information. With the offer, Admissions sends every student a summary of this policy, the Student Learning Agreement, the course start date, the enrolment deadline, term dates, the pattern of the timetable, and how to contact BSMI.

4.10 Student Learning Agreement. The student signs and returns the Learning Agreement before the course starts. For sponsored students, it must be returned before BSMI assigns a CAS.

4.11 Pre-arrival contact with sponsored students. Admissions contacts each sponsored student at these points and records every contact in the student file:

1. when the CAS is assigned, explaining the enrolment deadline and attendance expectations
2. when the visa decision is received; the student must send BSMI the decision, or confirmation of their eVisa, within 5 working days
3. when travel is booked; the student sends their arrival date and UK address
4. about 7 days before the course starts, to confirm arrival and the enrolment arrangements

4.12 If a sponsored student does not reply after three attempts over 10 working days, Admissions refers the case to the Compliance Officer.

4.13 Enrolment deadline and late arrival. Students must enrol in person by the course start date. A student who cannot arrive in time must ask Admissions in writing before the course starts. Late enrolment may be approved up to the latest enrolment date on the CAS, only if the student can still complete the course. Otherwise the student is offered a later start and, if sponsored, a new CAS.

4.14 No-shows, withdrawals and visa refusals. If a sponsored student withdraws before arrival, is refused a visa, or does not enrol by the latest date on the CAS, BSMI reports this to UKVI within 10 working days (section 11). Refunds follow BSMI’s Refund Policy.

4.15 Students under 18. Before arrival, BSMI must hold the parents’ or legal guardian’s signed consent to the student’s visa application, travel, reception and care arrangements in the UK, together with details of the student’s accommodation, emergency contacts and airport transfer.

5. Enrolment checks and record keeping

5.1 Students enrol in person before they join classes. For sponsored students, the Compliance Officer or a trained member of staff:

• checks the original passport and keeps a copy of the pages showing identity details
• checks the student’s immigration permission, using the Home Office “view and prove” service for eVisa holders, and keeps an electronic copy
• checks that the conditions of the permission are correct, and reports any error to UKVI
• checks the date the student entered the UK against the start date of their permission, using the entry stamp or, if there is none, the e-ticket or boarding pass, and records the entry date
• records the student’s UK address, phone number and email address
• keeps copies of the evidence used to make the offer, such as qualifications and English language results
• for students under 18, keeps a copy of the parental consent letter

5.2 A student who entered the UK before the start date of their permission cannot begin studying until they have left and re-entered on or after that date.

5.3 Students must tell BSMI about any change of address, phone number or email within 5 working days. BSMI keeps a history of these details.

5.4 BSMI keeps attendance records and the documents above for the length of sponsorship and for at least one year after it ends, or longer where BSMI’s data retention schedule requires.

5.5 At induction, every student receives their timetable and is taken through this policy, how to report an absence, and who to contact for support.

6. Recording and monitoring attendance and engagement

6.1 Teachers take the register in the college management system within the first 10 minutes of every timetabled session, marking each student present, late, absent, or on authorised absence. Assignment submissions, assessment attendance and required online activity are also recorded.

6.2 Monitoring happens at four levels:

6.3 The termly report includes the measures UKVI uses in its annual compliance check: the enrolment rate (at least 95%), the course completion rate (at least 85%, rising to 90% for checks from June 2027) and the visa refusal rate (below 5%). It also covers the continuation and completion measures OfS uses.

6.4 Students can see their own attendance record, and it is discussed at every tutorial.

7. Lateness

7.1 Sessions start at the times on the student’s timetable. Students who will be late must text or call BSMI on the number given at induction.

7.2 A student who arrives within the first 10 minutes is marked late and counted as present.

7.3 A student aged 18 or over who arrives more than 10 minutes late is marked absent for that session. The teacher may let them join quietly or ask them to join after the break, so that other students’ learning is not disrupted.

7.4 Students under 18 are always admitted, however late they arrive. Their lateness is recorded on the Under-18s Absence and Lateness Form.

7.5 Being late three times or more in any two-week period leads to a Stage 1 meeting (section 10).

8. Reporting absence and authorised absence

8.1 Reporting an absence. A student who cannot attend must tell BSMI before their first session that day, by phone or text to the number given at induction and by email to the absence address given at induction. They must say why and when they expect to return.

8.2 Authorised absence. The Senior Academic Manager decides whether an absence is authorised and records the decision. Requests for planned absence must be made in writing in advance.

8.3 Holidays must be taken during the published holiday periods. Absence for any reason not listed above, or without notice, is unauthorised.

8.4 Interruption for sponsored students. BSMI may keep sponsoring a student during an authorised interruption of up to 60 days, reporting it to UKVI where the sponsor guidance requires. If the interruption will be longer than 60 days, BSMI stops sponsoring the student and reports this to UKVI. The student must then leave the UK and will need a new CAS and visa to return.

8.5 Authorised absences do not lead to warnings under section 10. They still count in the attendance rate, but the Senior Academic Manager takes documented authorised absence into account when making decisions under sections 10 and 13.

9. Welfare and safeguarding

9.1 Students under 18. If a student under 18 has not arrived and has not contacted BSMI within 30 minutes of the start of their first session, the system sends an automatic absence warning and the Senior Academic Manager contacts the student, then their parent or guardian and their homestay or accommodation provider. If the student is not found by midday, the Designated Safeguarding Lead decides whether to contact the police and the local authority. Every step is logged on the Under-18s Absence and Lateness Form.

9.2 Adult students absent without notice. The college management system automatically sends the student an absence warning by email and text as soon as the register closes. The warning is recorded in the student file.

9.3 Three consecutive days. If an adult student is absent for 3 consecutive days without contact, the Senior Academic Manager is alerted by the system and then tries the student’s emergency contact and accommodation provider to check the student is safe and find out whether there are welfare reasons behind the absence.

9.4 Missing students. If BSMI cannot contact a student and there is a concern for their safety, the Designated Safeguarding Lead decides whether to report them to the police as a missing person. In an emergency, BSMI calls 999 straight away.

9.5 Support before sanctions. Where poor attendance is linked to health, disability, wellbeing, finance, accommodation or family circumstances, BSMI offers support first. This can include referral to support services, a support plan, and consideration of mitigating circumstances.

9.6 Disabled students. BSMI makes reasonable adjustments for disabled students and students with long-term health conditions, as required by the Equality Act 2010. For sponsored students, any adjustment must still allow BSMI to meet its UKVI duties.

10. Support and intervention stages

10.1 BSMI expects at least 90% attendance. When attendance or engagement falls, the stages below apply. Each stage gives the student two weeks to improve before the next stage is considered.

10.2 Before every meeting the student is told in writing why it is being held. They can explain their circumstances and bring a friend or family member to Stage 3 and Stage 4 meetings. Agents are told only if the student has given written consent.

10.3 For Stage 4, the student is invited at least 5 working days in advance and receives the panel’s written decision within 5 working days, with information on how to appeal (section 12).

10.4 BSMI may move straight to a later stage when a student has stopped engaging or when the circumstances are serious.

10.5 A student whose attendance stays at 90% or above for four consecutive weeks returns to good standing. Records of earlier stages stay on the student’s file for the rest of the course.

11. Withdrawal, sponsorship and reporting to UKVI

11.1 A student withdrawn under section 10 leaves the course and does not receive a BSMI certificate. They may receive a transcript of the units or modules they have completed. Fees and refunds follow BSMI’s Terms and Conditions and Refund Policy.

11.2 Reporting is a legal duty of every licensed sponsor. BSMI reports to UKVI through the Sponsor Management System within 10 working days, and stops sponsoring the student where required, when a sponsored student:

• does not enrol by the latest enrolment date on their CAS
• withdraws from the course, before or after arrival, or is withdrawn by BSMI
• has stopped engaging, as defined in section 2
• interrupts their studies for more than 60 days (section 8.4)
• completes the course early, changes course, or moves to another sponsor or immigration route
• is suspected of breaching the conditions of their visa, for example by working more hours than permitted
• has been granted permission with incorrect conditions

11.3 BSMI also reports any other change that the current UKVI Student sponsor guidance requires.

11.4 BSMI makes the report within the 10-working-day deadline even if the student has started an appeal. If the appeal succeeds, BSMI updates UKVI.

11.5 When BSMI stops sponsoring a student, UKVI is likely to cut short (curtail) their permission to stay in the UK. BSMI tells the student in writing that it has reported them and advises them to seek independent immigration advice.

11.6 The Compliance Officer makes all reports, keeps a log of each report and its date, and includes a summary in the termly report to the Academic Board.

12. Appeals and complaints

12.1 A student may appeal against a Stage 3 warning or a Stage 4 withdrawal decision. The appeal must be made in writing to the Principal within 10 working days of the decision letter.

12.2 An appeal can be made on one or more of these grounds:

• the procedure in this policy was not followed
• there is new evidence, or mitigating circumstances the student could not reasonably have raised earlier
• the decision was disproportionate

12.3 The appeal is decided by the Principal, or a senior member of staff with no earlier involvement in the case. The student receives the outcome in writing within 10 working days. This is the final stage of BSMI’s internal process.

12.4 Students who are unhappy with how this policy has been applied may also use the Student Complaints Policy. Complaints go to the Accountable Officer, Daniel Booker.

12.5 Once BSMI is registered with the Office for Students, higher education students who have completed BSMI’s internal procedures may take an unresolved complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA).

13. Certificates and progression

13.1 Students must achieve at least 80% attendance over the whole course to receive a BSMI certificate (for example for English language, pre-sessional English and the International Foundation course). This requirement is stated in the Student Learning Agreement, the Student Handbook and the Student Progress and Attainment Policy.

13.2 For qualifications awarded by an awarding body, such as ATHE and Pearson, the awarding body’s rules decide whether the qualification is awarded. Attendance below 80% is taken into account when BSMI decides whether a student is ready to be entered for assessment.

13.3 To progress to the next course at BSMI, for example from pre-sessional English or the Foundation course to ATHE or a higher-level course, students need at least 80% attendance as well as meeting the academic entry requirements. For sponsored students, this is part of BSMI’s assessment before assigning a CAS for the next course.

13.4 Where a student falls below 80% because of documented authorised absence, the Senior Academic Manager may decide that the certificate or progression can still be granted. The reasons are recorded in the student file.

14. Data protection and information sharing

14.1 BSMI processes attendance and engagement data in line with UK data protection law (the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018) and its Privacy Notice for students. The lawful bases are BSMI’s legal obligations as a student sponsor, its contract with the student (the Student Learning Agreement), its legitimate interests in supporting students, and, in an emergency, protecting a person’s vital interests.

14.2 BSMI may share attendance information with:

• UK Visas and Immigration, for sponsored students
• scholarship and government sponsors that fund a student’s studies, where the sponsorship agreement requires it
• parents or legal guardians of students under 18
• awarding bodies, where their rules require it
• the police, emergency services or the local authority, where there is a risk to a student’s safety
• education agents, only with the student’s written consent

14.3 Records are kept securely and for the periods set out in section 5.4 and BSMI’s data retention schedule.

15. Monitoring and review

15.1 The Accountable Officer reviews this policy every year and whenever UKVI sponsor guidance or OfS requirements change. Changes are approved by the Academic Board / Board of Governors.

15.2 Each review considers attendance and completion rates by course and student group, the number of students at each intervention stage, withdrawals and UKVI reports, appeals and complaints, and student feedback. It also checks that the policy does not disadvantage any group of students with a protected characteristic.

15.3 Related policies: Student Learning Agreement; Student Handbook; Admissions Policy; Student Progress and Attainment Policy; Safeguarding and Under-18s Policy; Student Disciplinary Policy; Student Complaints Policy; Refund Policy; Data Protection and Privacy Notice; Student Protection Plan (once registered with OfS).