Complaints about AAT Approved training providers and assessment venues

We regularly check AAT Approved training providers to ensure they meet our rigorous standards. However, occasionally a student may encounter a problem, or have a complaint that has not been addressed effectively.

Before you make your complaint

Talk to your college or training provider. They are there to support you and should be able to address your complaint. If you're still unsatisfied after exhausting the college's or training provider's complaints policy in full, you can lodge an official complaint through AAT.

How to make a complaint to AAT

• Write to our Centre Monitoring and Compliance team to tell us your concerns. Please provide as much information as you can about the complaint and email it to aatquality.assurance@aat.org.uk.
• Include full details about the nature of the complaint and what outcome you're seeking.
• Provide evidence that the training provider's complaints procedure has been exhausted, such as a letter from the organisation confirming this.

We will not be able to investigate complaints where you wish to remain anonymous.

What happens next

On receipt of the complaint AAT will carry out an investigation as follows.

• Within five business days of receiving the complaint, AAT will acknowledge your complaint and our Centre Monitoring and Compliance team will write to the principal/managing director of the training provider, enclosing a copy of the complaint and asking for comments.
• The Centre Monitoring and Compliance team will allow 20 business days for a response from the training provider. On receipt, the team will consider the response from the training provider and decide whether or not the complaint can be upheld. In some instances, the team may need to carry out further investigations before making a final decision, which may include a visit to the training provider.
• Once the investigation is complete AAT will write and inform you of the training provider's response and whether or not we're upholding the complaint.
• If we don't hear further from you within 20 business days of the date of the letter, we will consider the matter closed.

If you're not satisfied with the outcome

If you're dissatisfied with the way in which we've dealt with the complaint, you can escalate the issue through the complaints and feedback process about the service provided by AAT.

If you're not satisfied with the outcome of your escalated complaint

In this situation you can escalate your complaint to the appropriate regulatory body.