Students want and need to know who to contact for help when they have difficulties. Not knowing can easily lead to ineffective searching, frustration and then to dissatisfaction and a feeling of not being cared for. Even before difficulties occur, it can be reassuring, particularly for off-campus learners, to know where to turn if and when they need assistance. It also airs the legitimacy of students encountering problems and seeking help. A list of key contacts could include library, student services, personal academic tutors/counsellors, administrative and information technological support emails and phone numbers as well as the programme team. Structure course plans to ensure that support services are ready to be contacted to provide speedy, friendly and caring assistance and advice at the outset.

Example: Ajit set up a generic email box for student support which was managed by a rota of academics involved with the programme. Emails were either answered quickly by that member of staff or forwarded to the relevant person e.g. technical, administrative, library. The forwarded email was also copied to the student to inform the student using a standard format that their email had been received, let them know who was dealing with their query, and point them to the correct person for future queries relating to that topic.. The use of the generic email box also meant that staff turnover / sickness / annual leave did not impact the process.