De-escalation skills in student complaint handling
De-escalation Skills in Student Complaint Handling
22 June 2026, 2:00-3:30pm (AEST)
Students make complaints to resolve issues. During the complaint process, there can be circumstances or triggers that cause students to feel frustrated, distressed, or unheard.
This can result in escalating behaviour, and navigating these situations can be challenging.
This session will:
- Explain the drivers and dynamics of behaviour in student complaints
- Explore what de-escalation is, how to spot early signs and provide practical de-escalation and communication skills
- Focus on re-engagement, healthy boundaries, protection of procedural fairness and restoring trust between the student and provider
This session will use anonymised case scenarios from student complaints to contextualise the de-escalation strategies in the most practical way. This webinar is suitable for complaint handlers, decision makers, and student support services across the higher education sector.
Presenters
Shiv Martin is the Founder and Principal Consultant of Shiv Martin Consulting. Shiv is a nationally accredited mediator, practicing lawyer, and experienced trainer, and brings more than 15 years’ experience across law, psychology, mediation, conciliation, and public sector dispute resolution. Shiv has delivered complaint handling and conciliation training for a range of Ombudsman offices, regulators, and universities. Known for a warm, calm, and practical approach, Shiv provides expertise in managing complex conversations, building conflict-resilient cultures, and designing fair systems that strengthen trust, compliance and psychological safety.
April Vocale, a member of NSO’s Education Advisory Group, also join the conversation to contextualise strategies and pose practical complaint scenarios for Shiv to unpack.
Facilitator
Sarah Bendall is the First Assistant Ombudsman at the NSO. She is committed to improving the student experience across the higher education sector through education, training, and sharing of NSO insights. Sarah champions shared learning initiatives that bring external expertise to the sector, creating a culture of continual improvement through better practice complaint handling.
Registrations
Registrations close 5pm (AEST) 19 June 2026, unless maximum attendance is reached before this date.
You will receive a confirmation email once registered. Please check your spam or junk folders if this does not appear in your inbox within 24 hours.
Webinar Connection Information
The NSO uses Microsoft Teams to conduct webinars. The below links contain information on how you can access the webinar: