Instructions for AMENDMENTS

How to amend your LLC Research Ethics Checklist or Research Ethics, Integrity & Governance (REIG) application after you have received a favourable opinion from the Research Ethics Committee (REC).

For projects which are classed as low-risk via the LLC Research Ethics Checklist, changes can be made by submitting a new Checklist.

For projects which secured a favourable opinion via a REIG application, amendments can be made by adhering to the following guidance. Please note, if the LLC Research Ethics Committee (REC) requested that you re-submit your ethics application, please refer to Instructions for RE-SUBMISSIONS.

• You should be able to edit your original application before re-submitting amendments for review. However, the system can be temperamental, so if you are unable to edit your original application, please submit a new one.
• In either case, preface the title of your project with “AMENDMENT(S)” so that reviewers can see immediately that it is a request to make amendments to an existing project.
• As well as editing the answers to individual questions on the ethics application form, please provide a clear summary of the specific amendments you are requesting and attach it to the application.
• Do not continue your research until you have secured a favourable opinion for the amendment(s) from the REC.

UG, PGT and MScR dissertation projects

I am a UG/PGT/MScR student whose dissertation research was either classed as low risk (via the LLC Research Ethics Checklist) or received a favourable opinion via a REC-reviewed REIG application. Can I make amendments to my Checklist or REIG application within the three-month period before the dissertation submission deadline?

In principle, the REC is willing to consider minor amendments to projects in the three-month period before dissertation submission.

For projects which are classed as low-risk via the LLC Research Ethics Checklist, changes can be made by submitting a new Checklist.

For projects which were originally classed as low-risk via the LLC Research Ethics Checklist but minor changes are planned so that the project now raises ethical issues which require formal ethics review via a REIG application, amendments should only be made with the full agreement of the supervisor and where it is clear that the proposed changes were unforeseen earlier in the project.

For projects which secured a favourable opinion via a REIG application, amendments should only be made with the full agreement of the supervisor and where it is clear that the proposed changes were unforeseen earlier in the project.

Proposed amendments should be made with the following in mind:

• When submitting a REIG application, evidence MUST be provided of an earlier LLC Research Ethics Checklist sign-off or a favourable opinion from the REC.
• Amendments MUST be made in a timely manner. The REC reserves the right to refuse amendments to an application if it deems that the time is too limited to undertake the proposed changes to the research.
• An application for amendments MUST be made before the amended aspects of the research are carried out.
• The REC can not guarantee that proposed amendments will be provided with a favourable opinion (“approval”) given the timeframe.

Major amendments will generally not be considered except in cases where the student and the supervisor can provide a clear justification for changes to the project. Major amendments would include, for example:

• A change in research topic
• A significant change to the focus of the research
• A significant change to the methods or project design
• A significant increase in risk to participants or the researcher
• The addition of a survey questionnaire to the research design
• The inclusion of minors or vulnerable groups in the research
• A change in the population being researched
• Addition of the use of deception in the research
• Addition of the inclusion of illegal behaviours in the research

Please note that the amendments procedure should not be viewed as an avenue for circumventing the deadlines as outlined elsewhere in the LLC Ethics webpages.