Professional Advice and Services | Queen Margaret University

Professional Advice And Services (Disputes, Complaints, Trading Standards)

Queen Margaret Business School is able to offer a wide range of professional and consultancy services to both the public and private sectors.

We have expertise in:

Complaint Handling
Dispute Resolution
Ombudsman Practice
Consumer Advice
Customer Service
Retail Business
Hospitality and Tourism

These general areas are enhanced with the particular specialisms of staff in Marketing, Small Business, Human Resource Management, eBusiness and Consumer Insight; for example, we run trading standards courses, more information can be found below.

At QMU we recognise the importance of a quick, effective response to organisations requiring the services of a consultant to meet the growing demands. In order to supply the growing demands of organisations in the consultancy field, we have developed links with associates who are full-time consultants. Allowing a combination of theory and practice to ensure practical solutions to the problems of large and small organisation operations.

Further information on the Consultancy Services of Queen Margaret Business School can be obtained from Craig Cathcart.

Ombudsman, Dispute Resolution and Complaint Handling Courses

Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh (QMU) provides a number of accredited training courses to support ombudsman, dispute resolution and complaint handling organisations.

QMU was the first UK University to provide approved accredited training for the Ombudsman Association (OA), offering The Professional Award in Ombudsman and Complaint Handling Practice and The Professional Certificate in Ombudsman and Complaint Handling Practice.

Between 2011 and 2014 QMU delivered accredited training qualifications for the Financial Ombudsman Service, London. Staff worked in partnership with the organisation to develop bespoke courses which reflect the approach of the organisation.

QMU has provided training and has carried out research for the Legal Ombudsman for England and Wales.

The accredited training solutions have been designed to provide industry relevant courses to equip ombudsman staff to respond effectively to the high levels customer complaints about services from organisations within their jurisdiction.

The Consumer Dispute Resolution Centre is leading these developments for the University and is committed to continuing to provide training, research, knowledge exchange and consultancy in ombudsman, dispute resolution and complaint handling practice.

The Centre also delivered a new course for the Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland which deals with some of the country’s most challenging complaints. Professor John McNeill, Scotland’s Police Complaints Commissioner, has recently been appointed as Honorary Professor at QMU to advise the University on its future research and course development.

With specialists in complaint handling; ombudsman practice; mediation; dispute resolution; consumer affairs, customer service/experience; consumer protection and trading standards; enforcement and investigation skills; communication; mediation; decision making; data protection, surveillance law and freedom of information, Queen Margaret University’s Consumer Insight Centre is well equipped to deliver a range of effective training packages and research solutions.

For more information please email cdrc@qmu.ac.uk

Trading Standards Courses

Queen Margaret University provides a number of training courses to support officers working in the area of Trading Standards and Consumer Protection as well as those working in the wider regulatory community in relation to enforcement.

Bespoke training in the area of consumer law and enforcement can also be arranged. Recent and forthcoming courses have been delivered on:

Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008
Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Scotland) Act 2000 for local authority enforcers
Update on Unfair Terms and Contract law
Update on Consumer Credit
Law of Evidence and the Investigation Process
Diploma in Consumer and Trading Standards courses in the areas of Fair Trading Criminal, Fair Trading Civil, Consumer Credit, Advice Redress and Resolution and Product Safety
Foundation Certificate in Consumer and Trading Standards

For more information please email Jane Williams.

Collaborative Partnerships

The Division of Business Enterprise and Management Division seeks to be a community of collaborative learners. We have sought out partners in other institutions, at home and overseas, with whom this collaborative learning can be developed. As a result, we have a number of informal and formal partnerships where we can co-deliver our programmes, or welcome students into Queen Margaret University at explicit points via articulation agreements between those institutions and Queen Margaret. As a result, the learning environment of the division has been enriched by the diversity of the student experience.

We have also developed a good relationship with the local Further Education Colleges so that students can participate effortlessly between qualifications and institutions within the Scottish Credit Qualification Framework (SCQF). Partners include amongst others.

The relationships with our overseas partners have positively enhanced the learning environment at Queen Margaret via the internationalization of the curriculum. Students studying at Queen Margaret benefit from both the cross-cultural diversity of students studying here in Edinburgh, but also from the cross-fertilization of ideas that are exchanged with our partner institutions via the students, regular staff visits and exchanges, staff development meetings and continuing dialogue. Our current formal partnerships with international institutions include , Mumbai, Bangalore and Oshiwara in India, in Singapore, and in Kathmandu, Nepal.