Welcome to our Annual Report for 2022. The Report gives a picture of our work during the year and reflects on our wider context and relevant developments as we progressed our strategic priorities and delivered against our Operating Plan for 2022.
The number of complaints coming to us continued to increase. Nonetheless we exceeded most of our key performance indicators for the timeliness of our complaints-handling processes, although we did not meet our turnaround KPI and addressing this remains a key focus. We delivered a full outreach programme, both virtual and in person, to share learning from complaints with the sector and to engage positively with students, their representative bodies and higher education providers.
2022 was again a complex and challenging year in our external environment. We worked extensively with others in the regulatory landscape to contribute to thinking around relevant policy developments, to help promote a joined-up approach and a focus on key issues affecting students. Following discussion and planning over a number of years, we welcomed the Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act which will in due course extend our remit to further education students in Wales, giving more students the benefit of access to independent redress for their unresolved complaints.
It has also been an important year for developments within our organisation. We continued to grow capacity to manage our rising caseload, alongside our ongoing focus on efficiency, and undertook a significant project to upgrade our IT infrastructure to better support the service we provide. We maintained a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in our organisation and in our work. We also prepared for the key upcoming changes of the Independent Adjudicator and the Chair.
