Preparing for university

Disability support at BCU Speaker: Darren Martin, Pre-Entry Disability Adviser at BCU

This session will give you information about the support that BCU offers to students with disabilities, medical conditions or specific learning difficulties and give you guidance on what you need to do to put that support put in place.

SUMMARY

We will look at: why you might need support during your studies, the support that we offer at BCU, the importance of disabled students allowance which can fund specialist equipment and support, evidence you need to provide to us about your disability, and your next steps to get your support in place.

WHY YOU MIGHT NEED SUPPORT

Let’s start with why you might need support.

If you have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities and which last for 12 months or more you could be eligible for some support from the disability support team.

Examples of these conditions are: a physical or sensory disability, a specific learning difficulty, or a long-term health condition.

HOW WE CAN SUPPORT YOU

If you do have additional needs, the disability support team will make reasonable adjustments to exams, assessments, teaching sessions and course materials for the duration of your study.

These adjustments will remove any barriers from your ability to study so that you can maintain your independent learning and will enable you to participate fully on your course.

Our team is made up of specialists who support a wide range of disabilities and conditions and we are a confidential service so your information is only passed on with your consent.

We offer: face-to-face and online appointments and drop-in sessions across BCU campuses, we deliver screening, assessment and support for students with specific learning difficulties, we can give you guidance on how to apply for disabled students allowance which I’ll talk about more on the next slide, and we can set up access to study support workers including mentors and study skills tutors.

We can also provide you with advice about enabling equipment, specialist software and information about accessibility across campus.

DISABLED STUDENTS’ ALLOWANCE

Disabled Students Allowance, also called DSA, is a very important government grant that can help pay for extra costs related to your disability or condition.

You don’t need to pay it back and it is not means tested.

It can be used to pay for specialist equipment such as a laptop, Dictaphone or assistive software.

Please be aware that if you do choose to have a laptop through DSA, you will need to pay towards it’s cost, but this will be much less than the total cost of the device.

DSA can also cover the cost of: 1-2-1 mentors and study skills tutors, extra travel costs for your journey to and from university, and general costs like printer ink, photocopying or Braille books.

Disabled students who utilise the support provided by DSA do better at university than those who don’t, which is why it’s so important to see whether you are eligible to receive DSA as soon as possible.

You can find out more information at the gov.uk website shown on the screen or by searching “student DSA”

EVIDENCE ABOUT YOUR DISABILITY

For both DSA and support from the university, you will need to provide formal medical evidence about your disability that explains the condition and the effect it has on you.

Examples of evidence we can accept include: a letter from a GP, consultant or other qualified medical professional, an audiogram with accompanying diagnosis report, a certificate of visual impairment, a diagnostic assessment report by an educational psychologist or specialist teacher assessor which diagnoses a specific learning difficulty, or an education health and care plan.

Examples of what we do not accept include: prescriptions, hospital admission or discharge notes, blood test results, or access arrangement forms, also known as Form 8s, that are issued at schools and colleges. It is important to get the right evidence to us as soon as possible because we cannot arrange any reasonable adjustments without suitable evidence.

ACCOMMODATION

If you are planning to move into university accommodation during your studies contact our accommodation service as soon as possible to discuss any specific requirements. They can arrange a variety of adjustments including, wheelchair accessible rooms, rooms with a pull cord or specific equipment to make sure those with sensory disabilities are notified if an emergency situation occurs.

When you apply for a room, please provide accommodation services with information about your disability and any specific needs you have. Depending on your disability you may be able to stay in university accommodation for the duration of your studies at BCU. For more information and contact details, please visit the website shown on screen or type “accommodation” into the search box of the BCU website.

PERSONAL SUPPORT

If you have personal support needs which include needed help with shopping, making or eating food , finding your way around, or personal care such as washing or using the toilet, you will need to make these arrangements yourself as neither the University nor disabled students allowance pay for this type of support.

To do this, contact your local adult social services department.

It’s important that this is in place before you start university as the process can take a long time to be completed. Again, we advise you to make contact with social services as soon as possible to avoid you starting without the help you need.

WHAT TO DO NEXT

As you have seen, there are a few steps to complete to make sure that support is in place for you during your university studies.

To summarise, the first step is to make sure that you declare your disability or condition on your university application or contact BCU to tell us

This starts the process by letting the disability support team know that you are interested in studying with us. It does not influence the decision of whether or not you will be made an offer as you will be evaluated on the entry requirements and your academic merit. If you have declared your disability and go on to receive an offer from BCU, you will receive an email from the disability support team asking you to: send us your medical evidence, complete our disability profile form where you can tell us about your condition and how it affects you, and look into disabled students allowance to see whether you are eligible and if so, start the application process.

Additionally, we encourage you to visit a BCU open day or applicant taster day to find out more about your course and facilities so that you can think about any adjustments that you may need.

If you intend to stay in University accommodation, contact our accommodation services and if you need personal support contact your local social services department.

DISABILITY SUPPORT TEAM

If you have any questions, the disability support team is happy to help. You can contact us by email at disability@bcu.ac.uk or by phone on 0121 331 6495.

We have a pre-entry disability adviser who can arrange to speak to you by phone or online and you are welcome to have a parent, guardian, family member or support worker with you.

I hope this has been helpful and hope to see you soon.