SIZ Lost Property Policy
A large amount of lost property passes through the University, left behind by staff, students and visitors. The University is not responsible for any personal items which have been lost on campus, but we will endeavour to make sure items are returned to their owner where identification is possible and held for a reasonable amount of time before becoming recycled or disposed of. The information below is used by University staff when dealing with items of lost property.
Items found on campus are generally handed in to the SIZ, SU, Tudor Hale Centre for Sport or Accommodation Office(s). Please be sure to check all of these locations. Students are reminded to label any items of value to ensure that lost property can be returned to them.
USBs should be labelled or named with a student number in order for SIZ staff to be able to notify you that the item has been found.
Depending on the item type, it is our policy to retain items of lost property at the SIZ for a minimum of one month. The period of retention and manner they are dealt with subsequently will depend on the item type; most items will fall into one of the following:
| Item Type | Held for | Then |
| General lost property | 1 month | Item is recycled/given to charity/disposed of |
| Clothing | 1 month | Goes to clothing bank/ disposed of |
| Keys | 1 month | Held in basement for 3 months and then destroyed |
| Books | 1 month | Donated to library or charity |
| Mobile phones* | 1 month | Wiped and recycled - NB, please see details at https://help.chi.ac.uk/staying-safe-online |
| Laptops and tablet PCs* | 1 Month | Wiped and recycled - NB please see details at https://help.chi.ac.uk/staying-safe-online |
| Glasses | 1 month | Donated to charity |
| Unclaimed money | 1 month | Donated to charity |
| Valuables | 1 month | These items are kept for a minimum of one month at the SIZ before going into storage |
| USB Sticks | 3 months | If labelled we contact the owner and hold for 3 months. Any left unidentified are still held for 3 months. After 3 months they will then be wiped and recycled |
* It is essential that you notify IT (through the SIZ) at the University immediately of any lost devices
Reviewed 21/11/23