Changes to policy and curriculum

Conditions of Registration 2021/22: Supplementary Agreement (Social Work)

In March 2021, The Open University published its new Conditions of Registration 2021/22 (Apprentices) for the first time.

This Supplementary Agreement applies to Students who have been accepted onto an Open University Social Work programme and sets out the additional terms relating to study of a Social Work qualification.

The changes made:

There have been several significant changes to this policy:

1. Additional paragraph added to the Scope section to note that the Conditions document may be updated throughout the year to correct errors, improve clarity or accessibility, or to reflect changes in legal or regulatory requirements
2. Amendment to The Open University Student Charter section to reference the Student Charter Values which were launched in 2020
3. Amendment to contact details within the Introduction and Further Clarification sections to refer students to the main Student Support Team as opposed to the Professional Programmes Team
4. Addition of new paragraph 2.1 regarding requirements to disclose legal restrictions and conditions. Subsequent renumbering of section
5. Amendment to paragraph 2.6 (was 2.5) for clarification that ‘If the Social Work qualification is not awarded as a consequence of actions by a FtP panel or the Central Disciplinary Committee, you…’
6. Additional clarification added to paragraph 3.4.1 to explain where students can gain access to the Practice Learning Guide
7. Rewording of paragraph 5.2 to provide clarification for Apprentices
8. Correction to paragraph 7.1 to reference Section J4 of the Fee Rules (not J2)
9. Amendment to Tables 1 and 2, in Section 7 to incorporate 2021/2022 module fees
10. Amendment to paragraph 9.1b to reference the Equality Act (2010), and to account for other statutory duties and obligations
11. Additional wording added to the Further Clarification section to state that the most up-to-date response times for receiving and sending postal correspondence are available on the OU Offices webpage
12. Addition of contact details for Student Support Team within the Further Clarification section
13. Supporting evidence in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” clarified to be examples
14. Criterion 1 in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” altered to past tense
15. Criterion 3 in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” amended to reference the Equality Act (2010), and to account for other statutory duties and obligations outside of England, Scotland and Wales
16. Criterion 4 in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” amended to include surrogacy, and evidence from a health professional
17. New Criterion 5 in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” inserted to cover “An unforeseen prolonged incapacity of yourself due to adoption” and related conditions and examples
18. Criterion 9 (was Criterion 8) in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” amended to include evidence from household insurance documentation
19. Criterion 10 (was Criterion 9) in Table 3 “Circumstances under which Students may be considered for an extension to complete their qualification” clarified to specify ‘an unforeseen change’ in caring responsibilities

For more help or information

Please talk to your Student Support Team if you need any further information. You can find out how to contact them on Contact the OU.