What is an emergency contact?

An emergency contact is someone who a learner nominates to act in a similar way to a next of kin. Usually, learners will choose a parent or guardian, although it can be any individual over the age of 18 such as a family member or friend. It’s entirely the learner’s choice, but we encourage learners to choose someone they trust and who they can ask for help.

Why do learners need to provide an emergency contact?

At the Buckinghamshire New University, we are committed to fostering a culture of care and to protecting learner welfare and wellbeing. As part of this commitment, we ask all learners to provide up-to-date contact details for an emergency contact throughout their enrolment at the University.

What do I need to do if I am a learner?

We ask that learners obtain their chosen emergency contact’s permission to fulfil this role before they register with us, make them aware what the role entails and that their contact details will be shared with the University. A good way of doing this is by sharing this webpage with a chosen emergency contact.

It is essential that students keep their emergency contact details up to date throughout their enrolment at Buckinghamshire New University. 

What do I need to do if I am an emergency contact?

If you are outside of the University and you are concerned about a learner’s safety, please report your concerns to our Centre of Wellbeing Team by emailing safeguarding@bnu.ac.uk. If your concern is urgent, call Emergency Services (999) and where possible, notify Buckinghamshire New University.  

In practice, the University will use information about emergency contacts very infrequently, and we try to involve learners in any decision where we are considering contacting their emergency contact.

We might contact you if we have reason to believe a learner’s welfare or safety is at significant risk. This may happen alongside the University contacting other organisations such as emergency services, and we’ll always consider the impact of such contact on the learner and any concerns we have for their safety. Ultimately our aim is to prevent any learner coming to harm and reduce any risks of that happening.

How do I update my emergency contact after enrolling?

You will need log onto the BNU Connect portal where you filled in your enrolment form and submitted it. On the left hand side you will find a section called Profile.

This is where you will find what the current contact details the University has for you. On the Personal contacts TAB, you will find that you can amend the Emergency contact and then press the update button.

Mental Health and Wellbeing

Any student struggling with their mental health is encouraged to reach out to the Centre of Student Wellbeing for help by emailing safeguarding@bnu.ac.uk.  

When accessing support from the University, learners are informed of the Centre of Wellbeing Team’s approach to confidentiality and sharing information. Where learner consent is required and given, this can be withdrawn later, and the team will work with learners to encourage them to involve other people in their support. That could include their GP, family, or emergency contact.

In a small number of cases and in exceptional circumstances, the University may decide to contact a learner’s emergency contact without consent, if we judge that doing so is in the learner’s best interests.