Advice Centre Confidentiality Policy

The Students’ Association provides a confidential advice, guidance, and support service to current GCU students, our members, who are experiencing a wide range of difficulties. This is delivered by our Student Advisers in the Advice Centre on the Glasgow Campus (for both Glasgow and London campus-based students).

The Students’ Association works closely with the University but operates as an independent organisation and charity.

GCU students who access the Advice Centre will be provided with a confidential interview space, and any information discussed during interviews will be treated in complete confidence. Your personal information will be restricted to relevant employees within the Students’ Association, normally the Student Advisers in the Advice Centre. The Student Advisers will not share your personal information, request information from a third party, or confirm your engagement with the Advice Centre without your explicit consent.

The Advice Centre will not share anything you tell us without your permission, unless there is a serious risk to your safety or the safety of another person, or if we are legally required to share information. Under such circumstances, we would normally discuss this with you first. Where there are significant concerns about a GCU student’s health or wellbeing, we will share information with Glasgow Caledonian University. Any breach of confidentiality must be authorised by the Chief Executive.

For one-off enquiries, the Advice Centre may ask for basic demographic information, which will be used for statistical purposes only, such as monitoring service usage and establishing trends.

Due to the nature and complexity of the issues the Advice Centre deals with, it may be necessary to open a case file for some students. This allows us to track cases effectively and ensure students receive appropriate support through our aftercare system. Case notes and associated documentation are held securely, and personal information is accessed only by relevant employees and retained in line with our Data Protection Policy.

Students have the right to access their case files, subject to Data Protection legislation. However, they are not entitled to view any part of their records containing information about a third party. To access your information, please submit a Subject Access Request.

Further information on how we manage your personal information can be found on our Privacy Policy.