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https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2022/04/28/essay-mills-are-now-illegal-skills-minister-calls-on-internet-service-providers-to-crack-down-on-advertising/

Essay mills are now illegal - Skills Minister calls on internet service platforms to crack down on advertising

Skills Minister Alex Burghart has written to internet service platforms to make sure they know that essay mills - which facilitate cheating by helping academic writing, often by appearing to be legitimate - have been made illegal and to call on their support in making sure they can no longer advertise online. Here you can read that letter.

The Skills and Post-16 Education Bill has become law. Through this act, the Government has legislated for landmark reforms that will transform post-16 education and skills, including criminalising essay mills.

As you may know, Essay Mills are online platforms that facilitate contract cheating. Contract cheating happens when a third party completes work for a student which is passed off by the student as their own work. Many essay mill companies use marketing techniques which indicate they are offering ‘legitimate’ academic writing support for students. Reports also indicate that some essay mills seek to blackmail students who use these services. It is right that we have legislated against these insidious crimes.

It is now a criminal offence to provide or arrange for another person to provide contract cheating services for financial gain to students taking a qualification at a post-16 institution or sixth form in England, enrolled at a higher education provider in England and any other person over compulsory school age who has been entered for a regulated qualification at a place in England.

Similarly, it is now an offence for a person to make arrangements for an advertisement in which that person offers, or is described as being available or competent, to provide or arrange for another person to provide a cheating service. Importantly, the offence centres around the act of advertising to students, and for the offence to be committed it does not need to be seen by its target demographic.

There is now a strengthened, collaborative effort across the sector to tackle essay mills and we want you to be part of this campaign. Platforms such as yourself play an integral role in helping us to make the most effective use of the legislation; marketing and advertising are the lifeblood of any successful industry. We are aware that high numbers of essay mills have used your platform to promote their services to students in the past, paying for advertising to promote their companies. Essay mills are now illegal entities, and you should not carry their advertising. It is no longer a moral question; you will be facilitating an illegal activity. I ask you to do everything in your power to prevent the advertising these unscrupulous practices.

Removing essay mill access to online marketing will seriously hamper their efforts to target vulnerable students and I implore you to do so following the introduction of this legislation. We must now all work together to capitalise on it.

I hope that in writing to you today I have underlined the urgency of this issue and the important role that companies like yours play in stamping out essay mills once and for all and am sure I can be confident in your support.

Thank you for your support with this important matter.

Tags: cheating , essay mills , internet service platforms

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Essay mills explained: What they are and why you should avoid them

Essays and term papers can be stressful, especially for international students who sometimes doubt their ability to research in depth and write thousands of words in English, all to a tight deadline.  

That’s where essay mills come in, exploiting the fears of students and offering to do the hard work for them in exchange for money. 

But here’s the spoiler alert - you should absolutely avoid essay mills. All the time.

They don’t work for you. They don’t even work for the essay writers themselves, and you should see that as a big warning sign. But more on that below.

What are essay mills? 

Essay mills are pretty straightforward: You pay a company to write your essay for you. The company in turn offloads the essay to a (usually freelance) writer. A couple days or weeks later, and you get your completed essay in return. 

It’s not like a proofreading service, where someone can check your spelling, grammar and citations for a fee (though even those are controversial in universities). No, essay mills offer to write you an entire essay from scratch. 

In other words, they allow students to commit academic fraud. In fact, they exploit the worries and stresses of students and entice them into cheating. They’re considered deeply unethical, and put students themselves at risk of severe punishment if caught. 

Another business model of this kind are essay banks. Here, students can buy essays that have already been written. But there’s a much higher risk of getting caught for plagiarism, since who knows how many hundreds or thousands of people have used that very same essay. 

Are essay mills legal or illegal?

The legality of essay mills depends on where you go to university, but the unethicality is clear no matter the location. Here’s a quick rundown of essay mills’ legal status in popular study abroad countries:  

Anti - essay mill legislation in the UK was passed in the House of Commons in February 2021, and will soon be made law. It’s not totally illegal yet, but it’s just a matter of time. 

The Republic of Ireland has also passed a number of bills to help tackle essay mills, while the practice is totally illegal in Australia and New Zealand. 

As for the USA and Canada, some US states have made them illegal, while Canada is under mounting pressure to follow suit.  

But the content and nuances of these laws changes from place to place. For example, in some US states it’s illegal for the student to use them, whereas the bills in Ireland, the UK, New Zealand and Australia are an attempt to criminalise essay mill companies themselves.

However, when we talk about legality, we’re of course talking about the law. But just because you might not cause a criminal offense by using essay mills, it’s still academic fraud and/or plagiarism. And getting caught for that can come with some dire consequences. 

Long story short, you really shouldn’t use them, regardless of their legality. 

Why you should avoid essay mills

1. if it doesn’t make dollars, it doesn’t make sense.

The writer's pay is awful. I mean really bad. Trust me -- I write for a living, and I’ve seen hundreds of advertisements for essay mill jobs. Every time I see one I can’t believe how little money the writers make for so much time and effort.  

But does this affect you? Totally! Would you care about doing great work if, a) the money was terrible, and b) it wouldn’t take you anywhere in your career? I know I wouldn’t...

Let’s talk about cost and time to put this into some perspective. The price range of essay mills varies wildly depending on the writers they employ. You can pay anywhere between £10-£35 per page. Roll this out over a 10 page essay, and it could be anywhere between £100 and £350 for the final product. But you can also come across offers for much, much less money than this.

While that higher end of £350 might seem like a lot of money, trust me -- it’s really nothing for the amount of research, writing, citations, editing and proofreading required. 

If £100 per day is considered a “just fine but not great” sum of money in the UK, a writer would have to do all the work on your essay in 2.5 days just to make it worthwhile. And they’d have to do it without the subject knowledge that you have. 

2. The writers aren’t subject experts

Think about it: if they were a subject expert, would they really be working for a shady company that facilitates cheating? Not a chance. 

The main point is that these writers are badly underpaid and they’re not experts, therefore they’re putting very little effort or expertise into your essay. They just want to do it as quickly as possible before moving onto the next one. 

3. There’s no guarantee of a good grade

None. Since the writers are underpaid, lack expertise and rush their work, it’s a recipe for a bad final product. Multiple studies have shown that essay mills do mediocre work at best. 

The essay you pay hundreds of pounds for might get you a pass grade, but you could do much better yourself. 

4. The punishment is harsh

Every university has severe laws on plagiarism and academic fraud, which is the exact result of using an essay mill. At its most lenient, a student caught breaking rules on plagiarism will receive no grade at all for the work, but at worst they can be suspended or even expelled from your university.  

But the perfect “crime” goes unnoticed, right? Well, it’s unlikely in this case. 

5. Essay mills and detection services

Most universities use pretty innovative plagiarism detection software these days, which can pick up on any hint of fraudulent work. Thus, the risk of getting caught is very high. And by the time a student does get caught, they’ve already lost their hard earned cash to the essay mill company. 

6. Essay mills don’t care about you

The company doesn’t care about you, and nor does the writer. That’s a pretty bad starting point for doing business! Once they’ve got their money and done their sub-standard work, they can move on to exploiting someone else’s fears. 

7. There’s a risk of scams 

Most essay mill sites demand a deposit of the final amount, or sometimes the entire fee up front. Either way, you won’t see your essay until you’ve paid them something. This makes it a prime opportunity for scam artists to take your money without giving anything in return. 

You see, it’s extremely easy for scam artists to launch a website advertising essays for sale, then just shut the operation down once they’ve made some quick cash without doing any work. 

Speaking of scams, here’s an article on some other international student scams to watch out for !

8. There’s a risk of bribery too

And then there’s the risk of bribery. Even if a student thinks they’re anonymous while dealing with essay mills, they’re not. There’s an email address, bank account name, even their IP address to worry about. 

So if the company or the writer decides that they want to blackmail or bribe a student by threatening to unveil the truth, they can. And they’ll always be able to.  

A final word on essay mills: Honest work is the best work

It sounds old fashioned, but there’s no replacement for smart, hard, honest work. Any student can write a great term paper or essay assignment on their own. All it takes is time, research, and some focus. 

Even if you’re under pressure or lack some confidence in your English ability, there are so many better ways to deal with it. Use a study abroad education counsellor , speak to your teachers and your friends. They’ll be able to point you in the right direction and help make that essay easier. 

As for essay mills? Forget about them. They’re exploitative, they serve no good purpose, and you can do a better job yourself!

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Essay mills to be banned under plans to reform post-16 education

Unscrupulous ‘essay mills’ to be criminalised as part of the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill

Services offering to provide students with essays for money, known as essay mills, are to be made illegal under plans announced by the government today (5 October).

The government intends to make it a criminal offence to provide, arrange or advertise these cheating services for financial gain to students taking a qualification at any institution in England providing post-16 education including universities.

The move is one of a number of measures being introduced to the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill , to transform the skills and training landscape and help level up opportunities across the country.

The law will also be changed to give equality to technical education in careers advice in schools, so all pupils understand the wide range of career routes and training available to them, such as apprenticeships, T Levels or traineeships, not just a traditional academic route.

Minister for Skills Alex Burghart said:

Essay mills are completely unethical and profit by undermining the hard work most students do. We are taking steps to ban these cheating services. We have also announced a new measure to make sure all young people receive broader careers guidance so everyone can get the advice that’s right for them.

Banning essay mills will help to safeguard the academic integrity and standards of post-16 and higher education in England and protect students from falling prey to the deceptive marketing techniques of contract cheating services.

This follows a number of steps already taken to tackle unscrupulous essay mills, including government working alongside the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, Universities UK and the National Union of Students to produce guidance for institutions on how to combat the threat of contract cheating and guidance for students to make them better aware of the consequences, sending a clear message that these services are not legitimate.

Additional measures being introduced to the Bill include enabling sixth form colleges with a religious faith designation to become a 16-19 Academy, boosting diversity in 16-19 academies and allowing more faith school providers to open 16-19 academies with a religious character.

The Bill, which will enter its report stage in the House of Lord on 12 October, underpins the government’s transformation of post-16 education and skills as set out in the Skills for Jobs White Paper . The reforms outlined in the Bill will help to create more routes into skilled employment in sectors the economy needs such as engineering, digital, clean energy and manufacturing, so more people can secure well-paid jobs in their local areas, levelling up the nation and supporting communities to thrive.

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Essay-Writing Services To Be Made Illegal In England

Contributor.

Essay-writing services, known as essay mills, are to be made illegal under plans announced by the government on 5 October 2021.

The government intends to make it a criminal offence to provide, arrange, or advertise any essay-writing services for financial gain to students taking a qualification at any institution in England providing post-16 education, including universities.

The move follows a number of steps already taken by the government to protect academic integrity from the effect of essay mills. In 2018, 46 university vice-chancellors wrote a joint letter calling for essay-writing services to banned, and the government worked with the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, Universities UK and the National Union of Students to produce guidance on how institutions could counter the threat of contract cheating, and for students to make them better aware of the consequences (which might include removal from their course of study or expulsion from their place of study). The latest efforts to outlaw essay mills and other ‘contract cheating' has been welcomed by members of all parties and across the education industry, and hailed as safeguarding the academic integrity and standards of post-16 and higher education in England as well as protecting young people during their studies.

The  Skills and Post-16 Education Bill  (the ‘ Bill ') introduces this measure as a means to protect students from the “deceptive marking techniques of contract cheating services”. The Bill also aims to help level up opportunities across the country by transforming the existing educational landscape: alternative training and career routes, such as technical education, apprenticeships, T Levels or traineeships, are to be emphasised and given equal status alongside the traditional academic route (as set out in the  Skills for Jobs White Paper ).

Essay mills – given that they profit from committing academic fraud – are largely considered to be unethical, though they remain lawful in most countries. The UK follows in the footsteps of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Ireland by taking action against contract cheating.

Ghostwriting services are active globally, and often target students who are studying in a second language. The rise in demand for such services are likely the result of increased competition for university places, especially where coursework and open-book exams contribute to pivotal final grades. Ironically, these services encourage a lack of scholarship that sets students up poorly for further education.

The online learning environment that developed as a result of stay-at-home mandates during the Covid-19 pandemic meant that students became increasingly vulnerable to the lures of essay-writing services. As campus welfare and support became less accessible to students working remotely from home and motivation throughout the academic year dwindled as Zoom-fatigue set in, levels of online cheating exploded: the Quality Assurance Agency estimated in 2021 that there are at least 932 sites in operation in the UK, up from 904 in December 2020, 881 in October 2020 and 635 in June 2018. More brazenly, there are examples of essay mill service providers taking advantage of the difficult circumstances faced by students during the pandemic by offering 2-4-1 deals and other special offers to ‘help' students navigate a difficult and unusual few academic years.

While the proposals in the Bill are welcome, the measures do not amount to a full solution to online cheating. The International Journal for Educational Integrity has highlighted the increasing number of ways in which students wishing to circumvent rules on academic honesty may do so using technology. For example, the use of file-sharing websites to request assistance from others and receive answers to exam questions – in real time and during exam conditions – has risen by an estimated 196% in the year 2020-21 in STEM subjects. The Bill does not extend to Wales or Scotland, for whom education is a devolved matter: essay mills may yet target UK schools and universities and see plenty reason to maintain operations.

Gareth Crossman, head of policy and public affairs at the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, has touched on the length of the journey ahead, saying: “[the Bill] sends a clear signal but, with well over 1000 essay mills in operation, the sector must continue working together to put them out of business.” Only time will tell whether the measures, when implemented, are effective, and whether the government needs to go further to protect students from predatory academic practices in future.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

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Important notice: Essay writing services now illegal in the UK

Following a government reform, it is now illegal to use and/or provide contract cheating services.

On Thursday 28 April 2022, the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill became law, making it a criminal offence to engage in paid cheating services, often known as essay mills.

Essay mills offer students in Post-16 education plagiarism free essays and assignments in exchange for money.

The government has listened to calls for legislation and intervened to criminalise the provision of, and advertising of, cheating services. This aims to minimise the number of these essay mills in operation and to enhance activity already taking place to detect, deter and address incidents of cheating.

In a letter to Higher Education (HE) providers , Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Skills, Alex Burghart MP said: “Cheating of any kind is unacceptable. It not only threatens to undermine the reputation of our world-class higher education sector, but also devalues the hard work of those who succeed on their own merit.”

The university takes academic offences very seriously. Submitting work that is not your own can lead to expulsion.

We want to ensure that all DMU students are following academic regulations, which we outline  here .

The Centre for Learning and Study Support (CLaSS) team work with undergraduate, postgraduate and research students at DMU to provide support and guidance on a range of areas, such as planning assignments, how to approach critical analysis and how to improve your research and referencing.

You can access the CLaSS services here .

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Essay mills and their growing threat to UK academic integrity

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Custom writing services, also known as essay mills, have been an ever-growing concern for educators across the world since the start of the coronavirus pandemic—and are becoming increasingly prolific in the UK in particular. With the accelerated shift to remote learning, and with many students feeling anxious about their studies and career choices, essay mills have traded on the current situation, and are profiting in the process.

Students have found themselves bombarded with social media adverts offering ‘coronavirus discounts’ from commercial writing services - some even before they have begun their course of study. New research has found a substantial rise in the number of essay mills since the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic, with the QAA reporting at least 932 sites currently operating in the UK, a dramatic rise from 635 only three years ago.

This is an issue that Turnitin is passionate about. Custom writing services are a major threat to academic integrity worldwide and by increasing the prevalence of contract cheating and diminishing the significance of degrees and qualifications, they have the potential to seriously jeopardise institutional reputations.

Not only do essay mills harm student academic integrity and institutional reputations, but they also often rely on the exploitation of graduates both domestically and overseas, working long shifts writing essays for as little as less than £1 an hour or selling their own essays on to commercial writing services in return for a fraction of the profit.

The Essay Mills (Prohibition) Bill, led by Chris Skidmore MP, former UK universities minister, has already received its first parliamentary reading and garnered cross-party debate, with a second reading expected in the coming weeks.

Earlier this year, we shared our insights with Mr Skidmore and our evidence was cited in his speech to the House of Commons, introducing proposed new legislation to prohibit commercial writing services operating and advertising in the UK.

Turnitin is proud to be standing alongside major higher education bodies, such as the National Union of Students and the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC), along with academics from across the UK, to raise the need for legislation that specifically outlaws essay mills.

We are supporting activities that will penalise commercial writing services themselves, rather than students using them, by outlawing their operation and preventing them from targeting students through clever advertising.

Combined with the right policy framework at the institution level, awareness and engagement amongst both instructors and students, and the adoption of the right technology to support prevention and investigation, legislative action will help to counter the threat essay mills pose to the entire education sector.

As students, educators and institutions continue to adjust to the changed circumstances resulting from coronavirus, it has never been more important for legislative and institutional frameworks to align in tackling custom writing services.

The solutions and resources we offer are designed to tackle issues such as contract cheating. In 2015, the MyMaster cheating scandal rocked the Australian higher education sector. Shortly after, many of our Australian customers approached us to partner with them on a solution. But contract cheating is not just a cause for concern in Australia. This issue is global. We created Turnitin Originality in response to the growing need across the whole higher education sector to address essay mill use.

Turnitin Originality provides instructors and educators with the tools they need to address historically nebulous behaviour, working with students to ensure that they understand the seriousness of contract cheating.

By providing insights based on a student’s body of work and their progression over time, Turnitin Originality helps educators identify and compile information to manage contract cheating cases.

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Letter: The criminality of essay mills is hurting universities

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Article England: Legislation Introduced Prohibiting 'Essay Mills' in Higher Education

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On October 5, 2021, a new chapter was added to the United Kingdom (U.K.) Parliament’s Skills and Post Education Bill . If enacted, the bill would make it a criminal offense to provide for or arrange, for financial gain, services to any students studying at an institution in England providing education to students older than 16 (“post-16 education”). The bill would also make it an offense to advertise these services. The bill defines “services” as “completing all or part of an assignment on behalf of a student.” The offenses would be punishable with a fine.

These services, known as “essay mills,” have been described by Member of Parliament Chris Skidmore as “a rot that infects the very discipline of learning and has the potential to damage academic integrity beyond repair.” By banning these services, the government aims to “safeguard the academic integrity and standards of post-16 and higher education in England and protect students from falling prey to the deceptive marketing techniques of contract cheating services. ”

Despite the government calling on private industry to restrict advertising and methods of payments for these essay mills, and the fact that students can face severe academic penalties for using them, the number of essay mills operating in the U.K. has steadily increased over the past few years, rising from 635 in June 2018 to 932 in February 2021. In 2018 it was estimated that one in seven students had paid for an essay and that both students and YouTubers were being hired as influencers to promote essay mills. The cost of a standard 2,000-word essay varies from 3 pounds to 800 pounds, with the most prominent essay mill charging 279 pounds (approximately US$4, $1,085, and $380, respectively) for an essay delivered within a week. In addition, students have reportedly been blackmailed by essay mills and threatened with being exposed to their universities or employers after they have used these services.

Essay mills claim they aim to help “ increase a student’s understanding of a topic ,” while educational professionals note that these companies aggressively market their services to students toward the end of the semester, close to the deadline when papers should be submitted, when students are feeling pressure to meet deadlines.

The government is continuing to work alongside the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, Universities UK, and the National Union of Students to help produce guidance for both educational institutions on how to tackle essay mills and educate students to ensure they are aware of the consequences of cheating.

This is not the first time legislation to prohibit essay mills from operating in England has been proposed. On February 10, 2021, a private member’s bill titled the Essay Mills (Prohibition) Bill was introduced in the House of Commons, and before that, on January 30, 2020, another private member’s bill titled Higher Education Cheating Services Prohibition Bill had been introduced in the House of Lords. Both failed to progress through Parliament, which is not unusual for private member’s bills, which frequently aim to highlight an issue.

The Skills and Post Education Bill also contains provisions that are not related to essay mills. The bill aims to tackle shortages in employment in areas such as engineering, clean energy, and manufacturing by requiring schools, when providing career advice , to give as much weight to technical education, such as apprenticeships, as to traditional academic education.

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Out-Law Analysis 3 min. read

‘Essay mills’ ban will benefit universities and students alike

26 Oct 2021, 9:05 am

The Department for Education (DfE) announced in early October that “essay mills” are to be made illegal under a new Skills and Post-16 Education Bill. This follows calls from Chris Skidmore, former universities minister, in February to impose a ban.

The measures will make it a criminal offence to provide, arrange or advertise these cheating services for financial gain to students taking post-16 qualifications at institutions in England, including universities. The DfE said this will help protect students by ensuring that they are not placed at risk by “deceptive marketing techniques of contract cheating services”.

Julian Sladdin

The announcement provides a clear message from the government that cheating will not be tolerated in UK higher education

Why action is needed now

The move to ban essay mills is long overdue. Evidence for legislative intervention has been building over a number of years to the point where the problem of web-based essay mill services is now a global issue.

The availability of these businesses and their ability to target students in further and higher education is a major assault on academic integrity and an attack on the core values of academia. Any further delay in introducing a ban would continue to be harmful to the sector as a whole and place vulnerable students at further risk of being drawn into using contract cheating services.

The growing evidence for intervention

In September 2018, 46 vice-chancellors from some of the UK's leading universities, together with other sector leaders, felt compelled to write an open letter to Damian Hinds, the then education secretary in England, requesting that the government introduce legislation to outlaw the "provision and advertising of essay mills" before the end of that parliament. This followed a survey by Swansea University which indicated that as many as one in seven graduates may have paid someone else to write an essay or assignment for them, and that internationally up to 31 million graduates could have engaged in the practice of contract cheating – paying another party to prepare work to be submitted for assessment – during their time at university.

Another study by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education QAA) found 17,000 cases of cheating by students, although no breakdown of contract cheating cases is available from the QAA research. Its most recent surveys suggest cheating has increased through the pandemic and that there are over 900 essay mills operating in the UK. This is up from 635 in 2018.

While various UK government ministers have confirmed over the past few years that legislation to address the problem was an option, it had appeared until now that the latest government policy was to put the onus on the universities sector to take action themselves to address the issue, through getting students to commit to ‘honour codes’  upon enrolment, for instance. The only other actions proposed beyond that was a request that payment providers stop processing payments to essay mills, for other online platforms to remove advertisements for essay writing services and promotional content about those services, and for the government to discuss with technology providers the better use of anti-cheating software.

Action taken by the sector

The higher education sector and online platforms do not have a role to play, and a joined-up response is required, but it is clear based on the mounting evidence that legislative intervention – like what has already happened in New Zealand and Australia – is a core part of what is needed to combat the problem of essay mills.

The higher education sector has made significant progress in combatting academic misconduct, in all its forms, over the last few years. This has included the use of better technology, more robust policies and assessment design, and better educating students as to the significant risks to them of cheating in assessed work.

In addition, guidance from the QAA in 2017, updated in 2020, on how to address contract cheating has resulted in institutions blocking access to sites which are known to offer essay writing services through their IT systems, updating their induction processes, student support and assessments as well as the wording of student undertakings regarding the integrity of work submitted for assessment to combat this issue. Universities have also been making it implicit to staff that offering their services to such companies could have serious disciplinary implications.

Real world impact 

However, the statistics from Swansea University and QAA have shown that the problem is not only worldwide but increasing despite the steps already taken by universities and online platforms and payment providers.

Anecdotally, we have heard that the lack of legal restrictions on the trading of essay services is creating a safeguarding issue in relation to the most vulnerable students. There are concerning examples of vulnerable students all too often being enticed to use the services of essay mills by assurances given by those providers that their activities are legitimate study aids only for them to be subsequently blackmailed by those providers to hand over ever increasing sums of money on threat of being exposed to their university.

Therefore, while long overdue, it is extremely welcome that the UK government is now putting forward legislation to curb the activities of essay mills. In addition to offering the protections afforded by a statutory ban, the announcement provides a clear message from the government that cheating will not be tolerated in UK higher education. This planned intervention is critical if the apparent continuing increase in contract cheating amongst university students is to be reversed. 

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I run an essay-writing company for students – this is how it works

There have been fresh calls to make so-called essay mills illegal - but what are the actually like.

More than 40 university chiefs have called on the Education Secretary to ban so-called “essay mills” amid fears they are undermining the integrity of university courses.

In a letter to Damian Hinds , those backing the call urged him to tackle those who provide the services, rather than the students that use them.

Essay-writing services have long been accused of facilitating cheating – but what is it actually like to work for one of them?

One such company providing students with model answers for a fee is UK Essays, an essay-writing service owned by the company All Answers.

Ten-day turnaround

Chief operations officer Daniel Dennehy spoke to i about what it’s like to run such an operation, which he says is used by a couple of thousand students every year.

The essays themselves, he explained, are written by a team of freelance researchers.

At any one time they have a few hundred researchers working on live projects, though their wider database of potential writers comprises more than a thousand.

Jobs are passed on to researchers with the relevant knowledge and experience, with the typical turnaround for an essay about 10 days.

He argues some students will go to a private tutor or family member when they don’t understand a topic and that using a model answer is just another way of seeking help.

And he said that those writing the essays also had faith in the service. “Our researchers believe in it too, that the work they are providing is a model answer, that they are helping the students. They will sit down and explain it.”

According to Mr Dennehy, there are two types of company in the essay-writing industry. “Those that don’t promote cheating and try to stop it like ourselves and those who promote cheating and couldn’t care less about academic integrity.”

He said the latter tended to be overseas companies or lone-operators, adding UK Essays sets out clear guidelines in their ‘fair use’ policy as to how their answers should be used.

These state that students should not submit the model answer as their own work and instead use it as a “basis for your own further research” to create an entirely original work.

Mr Dennehy told i they regularly rejected students should they give the impression they simply want to hand in the essay as it is.

‘We turn people away on a daily basis’

“If they don’t understand and say ‘I just need to hand it in’ then we turn them away. We turn people away on a daily basis,” he said

But he admits there is little they can do if a student who does receive an essay chooses to go against their advice.

It is a problem which has already prompted a number of other countries, such as New Zealand, Ireland and Australia, to make essay mills illegal.

Mr Dennehy said that the best way to deal with issues arising from essay-writing services would be to “regulate” the industry, adding he was “more than happy” to work with universities and the government to address their concerns.

He claimed that making students declare they have used a service would allow universities to use plagiarism-detection technology to check final essays against model answers purchased.

‘This is about academic integrity’

Last year academics at Swansea University Medical School called on the government to impose fines on firms providing custom-written essays following a study that looked at 21 such companies.

Michael Draper, associate professor at Swansea’s College of Law and Criminology and co-author of the research, said any fine would need to be large enough to hurt the company’s bank balance.

“It can’t be something that could be looked at as an added overhead, it must be big enough to hit their profits,” he said.

“But the challenge is also about changing students’ behaviour, this is about academic integrity and ensuring students learn.”

The signatories of this week’s letter, who include university vice chancellors, the chief executive of the Russell Group of universities and the former head of Ucas . also consider the essay mills cheating.

They state: “This form of cheating is particularly hard to detect and, whilst universities must continue to do their part, it is clear to us the time has come for the Government to give legislative backing to the efforts to shut down these operations.

“Legislation will not be a magic bullet; it is, however, a vital part of the broader package of measures.”

Universities minister Sam Gyimah said work was ongoing to tackle the problem by other means, saying that essay-writing services were “normalising and enabling cheating”.

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32 waterside apartments proposed in Grimsby town centre - latest planning developments

New plans for Haven Mill and some of the decisions taken on planning matters by councillors recently

• 05:00, 9 SEP 2024

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A Grade II-listed former mill in Grimsby town centre could host 32 waterside apartments.

Haven Mill began life as an early 19th century corn mill. Later uses included as home to Tap 'n' Spile bar and the former Grinders nightclub, known for its multi-coloured flashing dance floor.

But its upper floors have sat idle and empty for some time - since 2005, according to an application document for its latest transformation.

Another day of action held to tackle anti-social behaviour in Grimsby town centre

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A proposal has been made to convert it into 32 apartments across the first to fourth floors. Eight would have two bedrooms and 24 would be one-bed flats. Read on below for more about this, and some of the planning decisions made by councillors on Wednesday, September 4.

Ross Davy Associates state in an application document the proposal would help revitalise "a previously deprived and derelict area in association with the adjacent Youth Hub development". The Horizon Youth Zone is being built practically next door, at West Haven Maltings.

The applicant for the Haven Mill application is Church Lane Humberston Ltd, run by Adrian Smith. The company is part of the consortium behind Pleasure Island redevelopment proposals.

Humberston Avenue new build allowed

Plans for a larger house at a Humberston Avenue plot have been approved. Planning officers recommended refusal, based on the impact on a neighbouring property. An agent defended the application as in keeping with other nearby plots for the space taken up.

Its future homeowner also spoke, stating: "This would be our forever home." Three generations of the family would live at the two-and-a-half storey, six bed home.

Three councillors called it in, including Humberston and New Waltham Ward Cllr Stan Shreeve. In a statement read out on his behalf, he explained changes to the original overall development plans had led to the previous owner to be unhappy. This included the number of plots going from six to eight, and a particular concern with the new house was overlooking by two windows.

The previous owning resident had not responded either way to amendments to the application since, a planning officer confirmed. Councillors were satisfied by the separation distance and gave approval, with an amendment to require window glazing on one side.

Neighbour disputes settled

Last month, Grimsby Live covered two neighbours' planning disputes that councillors deferred. These came back before North East Lincolnshire Council 's planning committee in September.

A rear extension in Weelsby Road, Grimsby, had caused neighbour disagreement. It had approval, but then got built higher than specified, by 0.3m, and breeze blocks were used. It had been deferred for a site visit.

Neighbour Steven Ellis expressed frustration that concerns raised with the council enforcement were apparently not passed onto the neighbours, despite four months of "badgering away". Applicant Giles Ramsden repeated it was an honest mistake by the builders that caused the height variation. There had been agreement on the breeze blocks after options offered to the neighbours. "I'm pleased to say our neighbours have opted for the rendering solution in a suitable colour."

"It does appear that the issue here is between the builders and enforcement," said Cllr Henry Hudson, who questioned why a stop notice was not issued to the build. A planning officer said these were rarely used and enforcement issues should not be a material consideration. "I think it is a consideration that's a breach of the original planning," persisted Cllr Hayden Dawkins.

Cllr Matt Patrick criticised those who favoured refusal. "These reasons for rejection are weak, they're going to be incredibly insufficient if it comes down to appeal."

After 50 minutes, a move to refuse lost by seven votes to three. Approval for the changed extension was approved, eight votes to three.

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A build as part of Snape Properties Ltd's 60-home development off Bradley Road, Barnoldby-Le-Beck, got deferred last month to clarify a boundary between a newly-built home and existing one. Resident of the existing, Michael Wishart, had reported a dispute with the new neighbour over a proposed boundary hedge and whether he had the right to cut it, as he had for decades.

Agent Mr Toothill said a number of documents, including Ordnance Survey mapping had been provided to show the hedge ownership belonged to the new plot. Mr Wishart stated at the September planning, "As long as the owners will accept the hedge is a boundary hedge and I can cut our side, I can accept that."

The changed build was approved without opposition.

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Radio 2 Gives Update On Zoe Ball's Absence

Entertainment Editor

The BBC has assured Radio 2 listeners that Zoe Ball will be back in her usual slot in the coming weeks.

Zoe has been absent from the Radio 2 breakfast show since 8 August, with various presenters including Scott Mills and Gaby Roslin filling in for her during her break.

Scott is currently scheduled to host the show all of next week, according to BBC listings, although the broadcaster has confirmed that its regular host will be back before the end of September.

“Zoe will return to the Radio 2 Breakfast Show later this month,” a spokesperson told the Express.

The former It Takes Two host took a leave of absence from the breakfast show earlier this year following the death of her mum , returning in early August, but went on another extended break days later.

Stand-in Scott Mills said on air the following week: “I’m sending you all my love, Zo, as are the team.”

Prior to this, Zoe had also taken time out from Radio 2 to care for her mother after she was diagnosed with cancer.

Announcing her mother’s death on Instagram in April, Zoe told her followers: “Thank you for teaching us how to love unconditionally, to always show courage and empathy, and how, even in the darkest of days, laughter is the greatest of gifts.

“We are bereft without you but will hold so tight to each other. Your grace and your smile that lit up every room you were in, will light the stars to guide us.”

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Report: 49ers were trading Brandon Aiyuk to Steelers when deal got done

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When the 49ers and receiver Brandon Aiyuk worked out a new deal, the 49ers were in the process of finalizing a trade. To the Steelers.

That’s the word from Jay Glazer of Fox, who reports that Aiyuk showed up at the team’s facility while the 49ers were trying to get the deal done. Coach Kyle Shanahan, per Glazer, couldn’t get in touch with the front office by phone. So he sprinted up the steps to pull the plug on trade talks.

A couple of hours later, the 49ers and Aiyuk had a deal.

Of course, a trade wouldn’t have been done until both teams had separately communicated the terms to the league office. But, still, Aiyuk had a change of heart just as the 49ers were ready to give him what he supposedly wanted.

It’s unclear why Aiyuk decided to stay (especially with the 13.3 percent tax rate in California), but he did. It’s also unclear whether the Steelers offered him as much, more, or less than what the 49ers paid.