AG and DPM

Thank you for getting in touch, your message has been received by the
Information Governance team at UCAS. One of the team will now process your
request or query.

In some cases your message may be forwarded to the relevant department who
will respond to you directly.

If your request is considered under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 we
will respond to you within 20 working days from receipt of your message.

If your request is considered under the UK General Data Protection
Regulation/Data Protection Act 2018 as a subject access request or if you
are exercising another individual right we will respond to you within one
calendar month.

If we need further clarification from you or if there are any delays with
processing your request, we will inform you as soon as possible.

Kind regards

Information Governance
UCAS

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Dear  Ms Daniels

Ref: FOI 147 07 23

Thank you for your request for information which has been received by UCAS
and considered under the [1]Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000. 

UCAS can confirm that some of the information you have requested is
already published on our website. For your convenience I have put a link
to the relevant webpage where you can find a copy of the Advisor Guide for
Undergraduate Applications.

[2]Adviser Guide for Undergraduate Applications

With regards to the Decision Processing Manual, UCAS can confirm that this
document no longer exists. Information for the Provider is now shared via
a provider portal spread over numerous sections and pages, integrated with
additional information and material. It no longer takes the shape of a
single document.

Should you have any queries regarding the management of your request and
wish to make either a complaint or request a review of the information
disclosed to you, please do so by using the UCAS feedback system. Navigate
to the following webpage [3]How to contact UCAS by phone, social media, or
post and click on the red feedback tab to the right hand side of the page
and leave your comments. Please make sure to quote your reference number.
This must be done within 40 working days of our response to your request.
After this date and in line with ICO guidance UCAS is not obliged to
provide an internal review of your request.  

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the internal review, you may
appeal the decision by contacting the Information Commissioner, Wycliffe
House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5AF, Tel: 0303 123 1113 (alternatively
01625 545745) or E-mail: [4][email address]  

Thank you for your request for information.  

Kind regards 

Avril Irish

Information Governance Officer

[5]www.ucas.com

Rosehill | New Barn Lane | Cheltenham | GL52 3LZ

[6][IMG]    [7][IMG]    [8][IMG]    [9][IMG]    [10][IMG]

UCAS is an independent charity supported by gift aided profits from our
wholly owned subsidiary UCAS Media Limited.

Our mission is to inspire and empower people, providers, and employers to
achieve their potential and thrive through choices in education, skills
and learning.

From: Alexis Daniels [11][FOI #1003244 email]
Sent on: Thursday, July 13, 2023 3:44:06 PM
To: FOI [12][UCAS request email]
Subject: Freedom of Information request - AG and DPM
   

EXTERNAL MESSAGE: This email originated from outside of UCAS. Do not click
links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the
content is safe.

Dear Universities and Colleges Admissions Service

You will be aware that you are subject to the Freedom of Information Act
2000 with respect to “the provision and maintenance of a central
applications and admissions service” to higher education providers. I am
writing to request copies of the latest version of the following
documents:

- The Undergraduate Admissions Guide
- The Decision Processing Manual

These documents consist entirely of rules, procedures, and guidance
concerning the operation of the central admissions service. It would
therefore therefore be in the spirit of the relevant designation order as
well as the public interest that they be disclosed.

Yours faithfully

Alexis Daniels

show quoted sections

Good morning Alexis

Thank you for your email. I can confirm the internal review process has been triggered and we will respond within the 20 working day deadline.

Kind regards

Carly

Carly McGahey
Information Governance Manager
UCAS

show quoted sections

Dear Ms Daniels,

Further to your above request, I have now reviewed your original request
along with UCAS’ reply. Firstly, I apologise for any confusion caused by
our human error in sending you the Adviser Guide when you had clearly
requested the Admissions Guide.

Turning back to your original request for copies of the latest versions
of: -

 1. The Undergraduate Admissions Guide; and
 2. The Decisions Processing Manual.

Having reviewed this request, I can confirm the following: -

 1. The Undergraduate Admissions Guide (‘the Guide’)

We do hold this information. As you have noted, in previous years, this
document was publicly available on our website. However, in 2022 our
processes changed and since this time, the Guide is only available to
providers who have joined the UCAS Undergraduate Scheme (‘the UG Scheme’)
via a dedicated Provider Portal. Information about the process, fees and
obligations for the UG Scheme can be found  [1]here. Within this
information if you follow the section “When to apply” and go to “Your
obligations”, you will find a section on “Business rules”, “Admissions
principles” and “Data standards”. These sections are replicated in the
Guide; however, the Provider Portal contains additional admissions related
content.

Content held within the Provider Portal is spread across multiple pages of
our ucas.com estate. There are at least 10 high level links with numerous
links disparately spread across these. The Guide (in whole or part) is not
available in a singular pdf or other format documents. Therefore,
complying with your request for a copy of the Guide would exceed the
current cost limit under the Freedom of Information Act (i.e., 18hours
work (£450)). However, if you have specific questions on a particular
area/s of the Guide, we would be happy to consider these. Please send
these to [2][email address]

 2. The Decisions Processing Manual (‘the Manual’)

I can confirm that we hold this information, and a copy of the Manual is
attached. Again, I apologise that the response given in our original reply
was incorrect.

While I recognise that we have been unable to comply fully with your
information request, I hope that this review of your request has clarified
the position in relation to the Guide, as well as provided you with the
Manual as originally requested.

If your request for a review of our response, or handling of this, is not
resolved to your satisfaction, you have the right of appeal to the
Information Commissioner.  Requests should be made to The Information
Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5AF or email:
[3][email address].   

Yours sincerely

Tessa Yates (she/her)

Head of Legal and Governance

Company Secretary

Please note that Fridays are my non working day with limited access to
emails so my response may be slower than usual.

[4]www.ucas.com

Rosehill | New Barn Lane | Cheltenham | GL52 3LZ

[5][IMG]    [6][IMG]    [7][IMG]    [8][IMG]    [9][IMG]

UCAS is an independent charity supported by gift aided profits from our
wholly owned subsidiary UCAS Media Limited.

Our mission is to inspire and empower people, providers, and employers to
achieve their potential and thrive through choices in education, skills
and learning.

This email and any attachments may contain confidential material and are
solely for the use of the intended recipient(s). If you have received this
email in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete this
email. If you are not the intended recipient(s), you must not use, retain
or disclose any information contained in this email. Emails are
susceptible to interference and UCAS accepts neither responsibility for
information, errors or omissions in this email nor for its use or misuse
or any act committed or omitted in connection with this communication.

No employee or agent is authorised to conclude any agreement binding on
the UCAS group of companies without a UCAS Purchase Order or a correctly
authorised contract

UCAS reserves the right to monitor and intercept communications for lawful
business purposes.

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