Wellbeing Services in Devon

Disability advice and support

Our disability advisors provide information and advice for students with a disability or long term health condition. 'Disability’ includes specific learning differences, other neurodivergence, long term health conditions, sensory or mobility impairments,  and mental health conditions.

The team can:

  • create a plan (known as an Individual Learning Plan) and liaise with your department to recommend study adjustments (for example exam arrangements);
  • help you apply for specialist one-to-one support and equipment;
  • help you access support arrangements for specific accommodation and car parking permits;
  • direct you to other services that can provide support at the University and locally.

Short-term illness or temporary injuries

If you have a short-term illness or temporary injury (for example you have a broken leg) that will get better within 12 months, you can still contact the team to discuss temporary support and adjustments.

Letting us know about your disability

We can offer support if you let us know about your disability. We call this, ‘declaring your disability’. You can let us know about your disability at any time during your studies or before you start studying with us. We will ask you to share supporting evidence to assist us with any adjustments.

Contact the Disability Advisors

If you are a prospective student, complete our prospective student form.

If you are a current student and have a disability and would like support please complete the initial form, then select Disability Support. Choose the 'Setting up an ILP' option to continue with your request. Following review by an Advisor, an ILP will be set up and stored on the Student Record System.

You should complete this form even if your health condition or injury is short-term (e.g. a broken leg), by selecting 'Any other disability advice and support' which includes temporary injuries/conditions. You should fill it out even if your health condition or injury is short-term (e.g. a broken leg). 

If you already have an Individual Learning Plan and want to update it or discuss further disability support, please select 'Updating or discussing an existing ILP'.

What does an AccessAbility appointment with a Disability Advisor involve?

If you meet with an advisor, the focus of the appointment will be a supportive discussion around your academic experience, how your disability/health can impact this, and the adjustments and support that are available to you. This discussion includes but is not limited to:

  • Teaching and exam adjustments that can be implemented via an Individual Learning Plan (ILP), and whether you’d like to add further contextual detail to your ILP

  • External funding you may be eligible to apply for, such as Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSA). This can fund additional support that includes assistive technology/software, and regular study skills tutoring and/or mentoring appointments depending on your diagnosis.

  • Other available support, including free assistive technology options, accommodation support, peer support groups, and how to access Wellbeing appointments and your Education Welfare team

  • If relevant for you, specific advice on how to pursue a diagnosis for autism, ADHD, or a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia

  • Answering questions that you may have, and signposting you to other teams if they are better placed to answer them

We will send you a follow-up email after your appointment to confirm what we’ve talked about and any further actions for you. Please do contact our administrative team on 01392 723880 if you have any questions prior to an appointment. 

Funded support

You will find more advice and help on applying for funded support by visiting our Disabled Student Allowance information page.

Specific support resources

Follow the links below to find out more about our support for you if you have or think you may have:

Peer support and events

Read more about our peer support and social groups. You may find some of our upcoming events or our archived webinars useful.