Graduate Standards and Reporting
I would like to make a complaint about my session
The RTT® training school believes in a do no harm policy and the courses we create put people at the heart of any techniques and methods we teach.
We recognize though that what we give people is the information and knowledge to create ethical practice and on very rare occasions our students, graduates, and the public may not receive the high standards of care and professionalism we expect.
This article will explain the correct process to report and support you in resolving challenges around professional conduct and safe practice as defined in our training.
Within all our courses you will be aware of a document called the Professional Standards, this document should be your guide when addressing with a therapist or coach any concerns you may have.
We believe in personal responsibility and accountability and this article lays out what responsibility you have as a client, student, and graduate and what support you can expect from us.
I am a student and would like to make a complaint about a session with a fellow student
As part of our learner agreement, we would always ask students to support each other and as part of the learner experience, things may not always go well, although this is a rare occurrence we are all just human.
1. Speak to your fellow student and explain why the session did not work for you and based on the course materials what you have learned and then feed this back to your peer in the first instance and use the practice register feedback form as another form of documentation so we as a school can monitor progress.
2. Your fellow student should then take this onboard as a learning point.
3. If further clarification is required then please either use the group tutoring sessions or contact support for further advice
4. If you wish to make a formal complaint, please ensure you attach any evidence and where the student has breached any ethical or practical aspects of the course
I am a student/graduate and would like to make a complaint about a session with a graduate
Where the session has not been arranged via the RTT® School then it is important to recognize this is a private transaction and therefore as the client you have a number of rights.
The RTT® school is a training provider and not a regulator and as such we cannot enforce practice standards or ethics.
During the training period we monitor and assess all students against the same criteria and at the time of graduating the team would have considered the student to have met the standards.
We of course take seriously any graduate who does not uphold the high standards we expect, but unfortunately once graduated we have very little control over this.
Think of this like an individual leaving university, they may have the knowledge but the university cannot and is not responsible for upholding those standards post-graduation.
What can you do?
1. Gather evidence that would support your claim as to why the graduate has not met the standards you would expect and then reflect this back. Always try to educate rather than blame.
2. If you have paid for a session and the graduate refuses to refund payment then your legal statutory rights exist in line with your country's laws, for example in the UK the Consumer Rights Act 2015 states
"Every contract to supply a service is to be treated as including a term that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill".
If you believe that the supplier of your treatment has not upheld the therapy and ethics as laid down by the school then you have a legal right to challenge the person in law.
See the Information and guidance module for more details within the E-Learning portal
We would hope that you would never need to take legal action but it is an option for you.
If this is the case we recommend that you speak to a legal professional and gather all the necessary evidence.
The RTT® school cannot supply legal advice.
What we can do in these cases
If evidence comes to us where we would regard the action as gross misconduct, such that the person you are reporting could be a danger to others then we may contact them if we have evidence supplied and remove their qualification.
For us to take this action we would need firm grounds and would look to educate and inform in the first instance.
I am a graduate and a complaint has been made against me
As a graduate you are responsible for your practice and the RTT® School gives general guidance around the use of the method, scope of practice, ethics, and values.
Ensure that any complaint can be supported by your understanding of these key fundamentals of do no harm.
Ensure that your terms and conditions of service are clearly marked out and that your client has accepted them.
As a business owner, you are ultimately responsible for your practice.
As the RTT® school, we are unable to give legal or business advice in these areas, however, many insurance companies and regulators are able to support you in this regard.
Should we find gross misconduct has taken place then we reserve the right to remove qualifications but we would look to support any graduate in the first instance.
Conclusion: Our commitment to you
The RTT® School provides all the basic essentials within your training to understand the ethics, scope of practice and professional stands that we require as a minimum.
Where coaches, practitioners, and/or therapists fall outside these we can only take action against any student on the program as part of their learner agreement.
Post graduation this becomes a consumer issue and as the client, this is something you need to take up with the RTT® professional you are working with and if required use your legal rights as outlined above.