Complaints about an education agent

All the agents we work with have signed up to a set of principles that govern their conduct and the advice they give to applicants. These include:

• Integrity: being straightforward and honest in all professional and business dealings.
• Objectivity: not allowing professional judgment to be compromised by bias or conflict of interest.
• Professional competence and due care: maintaining professional knowledge and service, and acting diligently.
• Transparency: declaring conflicts of interest to all clients, especially where fees are charged to both the University and the student.
• Confidentiality: respecting personal information and not releasing it without proper authority, in line with UK data protection law.
• Professional behaviour: acting within the law and dealing with clients competently, diligently and fairly.
• Professionalism and purpose: acting in the best interests of clients at all times.

You can complain to your agent, or to us, if you feel your agent has not lived up to these standards. More detail is in the National Code of Ethical Practice for UK Education Agents (July 2025).

Please lodge any formal complaint within:

• 6 weeks of becoming aware of the issue; or
• if you have tried to resolve it informally with your agent, within 10 working days of their response.

Most issues are misunderstandings or errors and can be resolved quickly, so please raise your concern directly with your agent first and give them a chance to fix it.

If your complaint is serious, or you do not feel comfortable raising it with your agent directly, you can make a formal complaint to us without seeking informal resolution first.

Use our online complaints form (the button at the bottom of this page). Your complaint should include a clear account of the issue, with dates and any communications.

After submitting the form, please email any supporting evidence to international@leedstrinity.ac.uk, for the attention of the Director of Global Engagement, within 5 working days. Include your name and application or student number, and say that it relates to a complaint about an agent.

• We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days.
• We will carry out a preliminary review within 10 working days to see if it can be resolved quickly.
• If needed, we will begin a full investigation, which may involve contacting your agent.
• We aim to respond with an outcome within 15 working days, though complex cases may take longer.

You will receive a Completion of Procedures letter with the outcome. If your complaint is upheld, we may:

• help you get a clearer explanation or apology from the agent;
• provide extra support with your application;
• assign a different agent or help you apply directly;
• advise you on any further relief under other LTU policies.

If we find the agent has not met our expectations, we may give them feedback or a warning, or suspend or end our agreement with them.

Onward appeal rights depend on whether you are an applicant or a registered student.

If you are a registered student and remain dissatisfied after our procedure, you can escalate to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) at www.oiahe.org.uk, within twelve months of your Completion of Procedures letter. Applicants who are not registered students cannot complain to the OIA.

If your complaint involves an area regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (for example paying in instalments), you may be able to escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk. You do not need to be a registered student to complain to the FOS. Please check any time limits that apply.