Extenuating Circumstances

This was formerly known as ‘Good Cause.’

FAQs

What are Extenuating Circumstances?

‘Extenuating Circumstances’ refers to any situation that may affect your ability to complete any part of your course, such as attending an exam or submitting an assignment. This may require an extension, deferral, or other support.

By completing the Extenuating Circumstances form, you can:

  • Tell us about your situation and any support you require
  • Ask your School to consider extended deadlines, if possible
  • Ask for your circumstances to be considered and adjustments or supportive arrangements made

How do I apply for a short-term extension (up to 5 working days)?

We currently split Extenuating Circumstances into short-term and long-term categories. We are working on bringing both into one place in 2026. However, in the meantime, for short-term extensions (up to 5 working days), please refer to your School's guidance - this may be provided by your course convenor or outlined in your Student Handbook. 

What information do I need to provide in the Extenuating Circumstances form?

  • Provide clear and accurate details about your situation.
  • Where possible, attach relevant documentation (e.g. medical certificates, letters from professionals, or other official records), or indicate that your request relates to information held by the Disability Service.
  • Indicate which School and course are affected.
  • Explain how your circumstances have impacted your course requirements, such as missed deadlines, attendance issues, or exam performance.
  • Let us know what kind of support you feel would help you continue your studies. This might include your School considering a change in deadline, alternative assessment dates, academic support, or access to wellbeing services.

How long do I have to submit a claim?

If you believe that any of your assessments has been affected, you must submit an Extenuating Circumstances claim within five working days of the assessment date (e.g. exam date, coursework submission deadline).

If you change your mind about making a claim (e.g. on reflection, you decide that the impact on the work that you submitted wasn’t as severe as you had first thought), you may withdraw the claim as long as you do so within five working days of the assessment date.

Thereafter, you cannot withdraw the claim. If your claim is accepted and you are asked to repeat the assessment (submit the coursework again or sit the exam at the next available opportunity) then you cannot later say that you wish to take the grade that would have been awarded for the original assessment.

What evidence do I need to support an Extenuating Circumstances claim?

Supporting evidence is required for your claims. Please review the following examples (note, this is not an exhaustive list):

  • Physical Illness/injury or Mental Ill health - Documentation from hospital, clinic, GP, consultant, counsellor, therapist, or carer. The University does not expectExtenuating Circumstances claims to be supported by GP letters in relation to minor matters that did not require medical advice and/or treatment.  
  • Bereavement - a letter from an independent person (usually not a family member), a death certificate, funeral notice, or order of service are other forms of acceptable evidence.  
  • Disability Related – Students registered with the Disability Service are not required to submit additional evidence of their disability. Evidence will be requested from students who have not previously provided information to the Disability Service. 
  • Family Emergencies or Significant Personal issues - a letter or document from an independent responsible person (or organisation) such as: Letter from a support service (e.g., Citizen’s Advice Bureau, social worker or other support organisation); The Police (e.g. crime report or accident report with reference numbers); Legal documentation from the Court, Crown Prosecution Service or a solicitor; Documentation from an insurance company (e.g. in relation to a road traffic accident); A member of university staff who was alerted to the circumstances at the time; Letter from a leader/manager or senior colleague of a group or club or a place of employment.  
  • Another circumstance beyond the student’s control – for example, technical difficulties with accessing, completing, checking or submitting an online exam, provide the IT Helpdesk Number if you logged the issue with the IT Helpdesk.  

We understand that there can sometimes be difficulties in obtaining supporting evidence.  

If you don’t yet have the relevant evidence to hand, you must still submit the Extenuating Circumstances claim within five working days of the assessment date. Supporting evidence should be submitted as soon as possible after that. If you require additional guidance, please contact your local Student Support Officer or Advising Team.

What if I have a chronic or persistent illness or long-term adverse personal circumstance?

Students with chronic or persistent illness or long-term adverse personal circumstances should also refer to the University’s Policy on Reasonable Adjustments & Supportive Arrangements for Students

We know this can be a difficult topic for some. If you feel anxious about it and need support, please visit the Wellbeing Home.

What happens after I submit my claim?

There are 2 stages of review after you submit a claim:

Stage 1: Initial Review

  • A trained team in Student & Academic Services will triage your claim
  • They assess how serious and long-lasting your circumstances are
  • They may refer you to wellbeing support services

Stage 2: Academic Decision

  • Your School will review the outcome from stage 1
  • They decide what should happen with your assessment (e.g. resit, deadline extension)
  • You will receive your final response via the dashboard. You will be notified by email that the dashboard has been updated.

If you disagree with a Stage 1 decision, you can ask for it to be reconsidered. If you disagree with a Stage 2 decision, you can appeal under the University’s Academic Appeals Procedure

Throughout this process, you can follow your claim submission journey on the system dashboard and view updates on the status of your claim.

What are the possible outcomes I can expect for Extenuating Circumstances?

  • If your claim is not accepted, your missed assessment will be treated as a non-submission.
  • If your claim is accepted, but your work wasn’t clearly affected, it will be marked as normal.
  • If your claim is accepted and your work was clearly affected, you’ll usually be given another chance to complete the assessment in the same format as originally offered. This will count as your first attempt, not a resit.

Further details about what happens if you're unable to complete the work later — and no alternative assessment is available — can be found in the University Regulations, including programme-specific guidance

What circumstances would be considered Extenuating Circumstances?

The following examples could be considered as Extenuating Circumstances:

  • Serious or incapacitating injury, illness, or medical condition or operation (whether elective/routine or unanticipated/emergency).
  • Significant short-term mental ill-health.
  • A long-term or chronic physical or mental health condition which has recently worsened significantly. If you are affected by a long-term health condition, please consult the Disability Service as soon as you can so that we can put support and reasonable adjustments in place. You may also speak to your School to explore other options concerning your programme of study (e.g., moving from full-time to part-time study or taking a Fitness to Study Leave of Absence).
  • A significant family or personal crisis (e.g., bereavement or serious illness affecting someone close to you such as a family member, friend or partner).
  • Jury Service or Court attendance.
  • Unforeseen events, such as being a victim of a crime which is likely to have significant emotional impact such as a sexual or other physical assault, being involved in a road traffic accident, an exceptional crisis of employment commitment beyond your control, or being immediately impacted by military conflict or natural disaster.
  • A financial or housing crisis, e.g., temporary homelessness or the unexpected requirement to move at short notice.
  • Severe disruption during your online exam, such as sudden software failure, prolonged loss of internet connection where you are using your own IT equipment, or a sudden domestic crisis. If you experience technical difficulties with accessing, completing, checking or submitting a non-invigilated online exam, you should immediately contact the IT Helpdesk. If you are unable to access the Helpdesk via the internet, call +44 (0)141 330 4800. In submitting an Extenuating Circumstances claim for such an issue, you could support your claim with reference to the IT Helpdesk Incident Number, if you logged the issue with the IT Helpdesk. Note, however, that if it is a University-based technical issue impacting a whole group or cohort of students, IT will publish a Spotlight Alert which will provide updates (you can sign up to the alert email list). In this case, your School should communicate with you about mitigations they will put in place, which may include advice that there is no need to submit an Extenuating Circumstances claim. If, however, you feel there are reasons that you were disproportionately impacted by the disruption, you may still submit an Extenuating Circumstances claim. If the technical difficulties occur in an invigilated online exam, seek initial guidance from an invigilator or attending staff member in the first instance. If the issue cannot be resolved, you may then be advised to submit an Extenuating Circumstances claim.
  • Extreme, unforeseen travel disruption on your way to an on-campus exam. You are expected to take reasonable steps to allow for some cancellations/delays.

The above list is not exhaustive, and we want to know about serious issues, beyond your control, that you believe have prevented you from taking an assessment or have significantly impaired your performance. If you are unsure whether your circumstances would be considered Extenuating Circumstances, please contact your School for further advice and support.

What would not be considered Extenuating Circumstances?

Extenuating Circumstances regulations relate only to short-term issues that may have affected the taking of exams, submission of other assessments, or your performance in assessments. In other words, issues that have prevented you from demonstrating in your assessments what you have learned through your studies.

Students are expected to cope with difficulties, problems and minor illnesses that occur in normal life in the same way as everyone does at work or at home, and to manage competing demands on their time. Around exam time a certain amount of stress is natural.

The following are examples of circumstances which would not normally be considered Extenuating Circumstances:

  • A long-term or chronic physical or mental health condition which has not significantly worsened recently. If you are affected by a long-term health condition, please consult the Disability Service as soon as possible so that we can put support and reasonable adjustments in place. You may also speak to your School to explore other options in relation to your programme of study (e.g., moving from full-time to part-time study or taking a 'Fitness to Study' Leave of Absence).
  • A minor short-term illness or injury (e.g., a common cold) which would not reasonably have had a significant adverse impact on assessment.
  • Personal/domestic events that could have been planned for and choices in personal life (e.g., attending weddings or holidays).
  • General worry about financial difficulties over a period of time. Please note that advice is available on the Cost of Living Support Pages.
  • Failure or theft of your computer or other equipment being used to produce the work to be assessed, including work not being backed-up. For exams taken on your own device, please see the online exams checklist for advice on steps to take in advance. If you experience technical difficulties with accessing, completing, checking or submitting an exam, you should immediately contact the IT Helpdesk. If you are unable to access the Helpdesk via the internet, call +44 (0)141 330 4800. Keep the web address and telephone number to hand throughout the exam diet.
  • Poor management of time or misunderstanding of deadlines/dates (including failure of others to submit group assignments).
  • Regular commitments to paid or voluntary employment.

You should therefore take appropriate steps to minimise the impact of such events as these are unlikely to be accepted as valid claims under Extenuating Circumstances.