General University Ethics Panel

The General University Ethics Panel (GUEP) considers most research proposals which do not involve animals, require approval by the NHS Research Ethics Committee or involve physically invasive procedures or intrusive interventions on human participants.

The panel helps to ensure that all research carried out by University of Stirling staff and students is subject to the same high ethical standards we apply to animal or clinical research. Research areas considered by the GUEP might include – but are not limited to – environmental, social or digital research.

GUEP Process for Undergraduates and Postgraduate Taught Students

Undergraduate and postgraduate taught student ethics applications are assessed at Faculty level and approved on a risk based approach. The risk based approach considers potential harms to the primary research participant, the researcher, environment and other stakeholders, and will assess applications against the University’s hierarchy of risk.

Students who carry out low risk research must complete the low risk ethics approval approval process via ERM. This must then be signed off by both their dissertation supervisor and either the second supervisor or the module coordinator. Any application that exceeds minimal risk must further be approved by the Delegated Authority within the Faculty. 

Students are responsible for ensuring that ethical approval has been granted before any data collection or fieldwork commences. Deliberate avoidance or refusal to engage with the ethical review process will be considered to be an act of academic misconduct by the student and handled in accordance with the Academic Misconduct Policy. 

Ethics review process for undergraduate and postgraduate taught students.

Related links

Information for University staff and students

Submission deadlines

The GUEP panel meets regularly throughout the year to consider ethical approval applications. See their schedule of upcoming meetings and submission deadlines below.

Applications due (5pm)

Meeting date

17 November 2023 05 December 2023
8 January 2024 23 January 2024
2 February 2024 22 February 2024
1 March 2024 19 March 2024
5 April 2024 23 April 2024
3 May 2024 21 May 2024
31 May 2024 18 June 2024
28 June 2024 16 July 2024
26 July 2024 13 August 2024
23 August 2024 10 September 2024 
20 September 2024 8 October 2024
16 October 2024 5 November 2024
13 November 2024 3 December 2024

GUEP Membership

Position

Name

Faculty

Lay Chair

Marilyn Moore

 

Deputy Chairs

Danny Campbell

 

 

Catherine Hennessy

Faculty of Social Sciences

 

Iain MacRury

Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Panel Members 

Stella Mouroutsou

Faculty of Social Sciences 
 

Louise Hoyle

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport
 

Grant Gibson

Faculty of Social Sciences

 

Saihong Li

Faculty of Arts and Humanities 

 

Ben Matthews

Faculty of Social Sciences

 

Andrew Kirkland

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport

 

William McConn-

Palfreyman

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport

 

Emma King

Faculty of Social Sciences

 

Emma France

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport

 

Sossie Kasbarian

Faculty of Arts and Humanities 

 

Danielle Mitchell

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport

 

Simon Hope

Faculty of Arts & Humanities

 

Lisa Evans 

Stirling Management School

 

Patrick Herbst

Stirling Management School

 

David McMillan

Stirling Management School

 

Ashley Brown 

Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport 

 

Jamie Macpherson

Student, Academic & Corporate Services

 

Gabriela Ochoa

Faculty of Natural Sciences 

 

Dave Little

Faculty of Natural Sciences

 

Kumiko Fukumura

Faculty of Natural Sciences

 

Tony Robertson

Faculty of Natural Sciences

 

Sarah Greenwood 

Faculty of Natural Sciences

 

Gemma Learmonth

Faculty of Natural Sciences 

Expert member

Alec Spencer

 

 Lay members

Irene Aylott

 

 

Kirsty Watson

 

 

Ashley Taylor 

 

Clerk

Lisa Reid  

Research, Innovation and Business Engagement

Administrator

Samantha Coe

Research, Innovation and Business Engagement

Contact GUEP

Get in touch with the General University Ethics Panel.