Research Ethics Committee: Terms of Reference
Reports to:
University of Hull Ethics Committee
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Research Executive (onto Faculty board)
A Committee meeting will be considered quorate when half the members are present.
Accountable for:
 Considering all staff and student research proposals, involving human
participants and all data collected about them. [Ethics clearance is also
needed for research involving animal experimentation, human tissue samples,
dangerous substances and risk to human participants]. All Schools/
Departments must have their own Ethics Committees PhD applications can
be ethically cleared by Chair’s action at departmental ethics committee level.
 Reviewing any complex proposals and any appeals referred to the Committee
by School/Departmental ethics committees.
 Maintaining confidentiality of individual proposal detail and feedback.
 The consideration of new programmes and modules, and amendments to
existing programmes and modules that may require ethical approval.
 Considering issues that may be ethically problematic in teaching.
Responsible for:
 Overseeing ethical approval or rejection of research or teaching proposals
undertaken within the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.
 Monitoring consistency of decision-making in ethics committees across the
Faculty. A database of all Faculty applications will be kept by the
Administrator of the Faculty Ethics Committee for seven years.
 Protecting the interests of potential research subjects: staff, students, and the
general public.
 Promoting professional responsibility and accountability within the research
and teaching domain.
 Providing feedback to applicants
 Co-opting particular expertise as necessary.
 Observing legal and ethical requirements to ensure the safety of all those
associated with research and teaching.
Consulted on:
 All ethical issues related to research and teaching within the Faculty of Arts
and Social Sciences.
 Potential ethical issues within learning, teaching and assessment.
Informed on:
 All research and teaching proposals within the Faculty of Arts and Social
Sciences.


Research proposals and new modules/programmes approved by
departmental ethics committees within the Faculty.
Deliberations of the University Ethics Committee.
Mode of Operation
 Committee meetings will be held at least once a semester, and additionally,
as the need arises.
 Written feedback will be provided within a realistic timeframe.
 The Faculty Ethics Committee will receive copies of the Ethics Approval form
with attached proposals (where relevant) which have been approved at
departmental level.
 An annual report of all proposals considered will be forwarded to the
University Ethics Committee.
 Decisions by the group will need to be unanimous. Where unanimity is not
reached, the proposal will be referred to the University Ethics Committee.
 In exceptional circumstances the Committee may seek advice from any other
person they consider suitable to assist them with their decision.
 Where a proposal has been rejected by a departmental ethics committee, the
applicant may ask for the proposal to be referred to the Faculty Ethics
Committee for reconsideration.
 Chair’s action may be given when a proposal is resubmitted following
completion of amendments requested by the Ethics committee; the Chair may
request such revised proposals to be seen again by the full group.
Complaints Procedure
 There will be full group discussion of any complaint addressed by a
participant to the Chair.
 Where a complaint cannot be dealt with to the satisfaction of the parties
involved, the matter will be referred to the University Ethics Committee.
Training
 The committee agreed staff are able to attend meetings to see how
discussions and approvals of applications take place.