Policies

Any policy-related queries may be sent to policies@tcd.ie. The email account is managed by the Secretary's Office.

As defined in the Policy Management Framework: 

Policies represent the official position of the institution on any aspect of its activities. Policies are clear, simple statements of how an organisation intends to conduct its activities that can be used to guide decisions. They are formally approved by the Council or Board and have broad application across the institution. Once approved, compliance with a policy is mandatory. 

Procedures provide detailed mandatory direction on how a policy should be implemented and may be approved by relevant Committees. They establish the ‘who, what, where and when’ in relation to a policy, and establish accountability. They outline what records must be kept (if relevant). 

In summary: a policy states what should be done, a procedure describes how it should be done. Broadly, a policy should be a statement of principles. Detailed procedures are generally not appropriate for policies. 

As defined in the Policy Management Framework: 

• Processes outline the specific steps or actions that must be taken in order to implement a procedure, e.g., system steps. 
• Guidelines provide approved and recommended approaches to implementing a policy but are not mandatory. 

The Policy Owner is the appropriate Officer or Head of Area whose remit or responsibility covers the subject area of the policy. 

Yes – the Policy Template may be downloaded from the Resources section of the Policies website. 

Appendix 1 of the Policy Management Framework provides guidance about what should be included in each section of the template. 

You are asked to use the template for a new policy, or when reviewing a current policy. 

The template sets the standard for how all policies will be written and organised, so they are easy to understand and navigate. 

In summary: 
Academic Policies go to the relevant Academic Committee of Council (or Compliance Committee of Board and Council) and then to Council for approval. 

Non-Academic Policies go to Executive Officers Group (EOG), the relevant Principal Committee of Board (or Compliance Committee of Board and Council) and Board. 

See Policy Management Framework, section 8.2 Approval Pathways for further details. 

The policy should be reviewed and changes made using track changes. Relevant stakeholders and users of the policy should be consulted at the initial review stage. The policy should be incorporated into the policy template if it was not used for the original policy – see Policy Template. 

The Policy Review Record Sheet should be downloaded from the Resources section and completed. 

Any changes that impact the intended purpose or substance of the policy (minor or major) require the policy to be resubmitted to the relevant Committee(s) for approval (mirroring the approval route of new policies - see previous FAQ). See Policy Management Framework, section 8.2 Approval Pathways for further details. 

A covering memorandum outlining the rationale for the changes, plus the Policy Review Record Sheet and revised policy (clean and tracked change versions) should be included when bringing for approval. 

See the Policy Management Framework, section 8.4 Implementation and Review for further details. 

A new Procedure may be brought to the relevant Committee for approval but does not need to go to Council or Board.

The Policy Management Framework provides detailed guidelines on the development, implementation, monitoring and review of policies. It was approved by the Board in April 2022 and revised in May 2024. 

Once approved, please send your new or revised policy to policies@tcd.ie. The date of issue on the policy will be the date on which the policy is published on the policies website. 

The underpins and is a supporting document to the University’s academic policies that reference definitions that relate to the curriculum.

The 2010 Consolidated Statutes of Trinity College Dublin and of the University of Dublin are hosted on the Registrar's website. The Statutes constitute the basic law of the College and the University.

The Trinity College Dublin Code of Governance is hosted on the Legislation webpage. The Code of Governance provides a framework for the application of best practice in corporate governance by the College. In order to meet the highest standards of corporate governance, Board members and employees of the College and the College’s subsidiaries should be strongly guided by the principles set out in this Code.

The University Calendar is available on the University Calendar website. The Calendar is  published annually and is the definitive source of information on the University's Almanack, University charges, general regulations and information for students on undergraduate and postgraduate courses. 

The Trinity College, Dublin (Charters and Letters Patent Amendment) Act, 2000 is available here. The University's Charters lay out how the University is governed.

A Supplemental Charter, which updates the University’s existing charters laying out how the University is governed, was approved by the Trinity Board on 7 October 2022 and was formally recognised by the Government on 15 November 2022. The new Supplemental Charter sets out the composition of Trinity’s Board.

The Supplemental Charter is available here.

A list of other legislation relevant to the University is available on the Legislation webpage.