Peer support
There are many interlinked communities within the University, and they can be invaluable sources of support for students. They provide a further safe space to discuss thoughts and feelings and interact with others who might face similar challenges.
University of Exeter students are running a Positive Wellbeing peer support group to help support your mental wellbeing.
The group aims to promote recovery, social inclusion and personal growth. The hope is to support people experiencing low mood, so they can build broader networks of social support, adopt self-care strategies and to realise that they are not suffering alone.
Please see their Instagram page for further details.
This popular group is currently on hold, as more students are needed to help run it. If you would like to get involved in facilitating the group, please email activities@exeterguild.com to express your interest.
Online peer support groups are still available via OCD Action.
There are two groups, run by students, that take place at 7pm on the first Tuesday and third Wednesday of every month.
Peer support sessions for anybody who has difficulties with food and/or body image. Overseen by eating difficulty specialists.
The Fatigue Social Group runs fortnightly on Wednesday lunchtimes and is open to anyone with a chronic health condition who experiences fatigue and/or pain, whether or not you have a diagnosed condition. It doesn’t matter what year you are in, if you’ve been before or not, everyone is welcome at any point in term.
Come along and meet other students with similar experiences. The group is informal, relaxed and friendly and facilitated by AccessAbility staff. You are welcome to drop in for part of the session and leave whenever you want. If you'd like, bring along your lunch and, as there are tea and coffee making facilities, please bring a cup.
At face to face sessions we may just chat, play card/board games or do crafts. Online sessions are likely to have a themed focus with occasional guest facilitators from other departments to share advice. We aim for this to be a safe, supportive space but there is no pressure to talk about your experiences or contribute. You’re welcome to come along, observe or just partake in games and craft.
Reminders will go out via the Fatigue Social Group mailing list every other week, including joining instructions if online, and location details if in person. If you would like to be added to this mailing list, or just have some questions, please email accessability@exeter.ac.uk.
If you would like to know more about the group or read some tips on managing fatigue at university read through our Fatigue Group Resource Pack.
Face-to-face sessions will be in the Neil Cross Room, first floor, Forum Library, Streatham (building 3 on the campus map). Please see the following PDF for directions with photos: Directions to the Neil Cross Room in the Forum Library. Links to the Teams online session will be sent out in advance.
Term 1 2024-2025:
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 18th Sep
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 2nd Oct
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 16th Oct
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 30th Oct
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 13th Nov
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 27th Nov
- 12:00 - 13:00 Wed 4th Dec
The Autism Spectrum Community (ASC) Social Group welcomes any student at the University of Exeter who identifies with autism spectrum conditions, or believes they would benefit from being involved.
The social group is facilitated by two of our AccessAbility Advisors, Sasa Donovan (who is also an ASC Specialist Mentor) and Ellen Gibbins, who help to run activities and support those who may feel anxious or apprehensive about taking part. Activities can involve playing board games or card games, working on a jigsaw puzzle, or doing crafts such as origami or colouring. You do not have to participate in activities if you'd prefer not to.
It doesn’t matter when you get involved in the year; you are welcome any time, and some students come a few times a term whilst others come to every group. You’re able to attend at any point in the session too, whether you just want to join for 10 minutes or stay throughout.
If you have any questions, please email accessability@exeter.ac.uk. If you would like to be added to the mailing list for weekly reminder emails, please request this via email and we can add you.
Dates and location (Term 1, 2024/25)
Dates: Weekly, every Wednesday from Wednesday 18th September to Wednesday 11th December 2024.
Time: 14:00 - 15:45
Location for 2023/24: Neil Cross Room, first floor of the Forum Library in the Forum Building, Streatham Campus (building 3 on the campus map). Please see the following PDF for directions with photos: Directions to the Neil Cross Room in the Forum Library
This group offers a safe, non-judgemental space for anyone affected by any form of chronic, physical condition.
These sessions are peer-led and run weekly.
For more information, please visit the Chronic Health Peer Support Group page.
Nightline is a confidential listening and information service run by Exeter students, for Exeter students. An instant messaging service all over the world is available on their website. Their number is on the back of your student card.
The service is available during term-time:
- Wednesday to Saturday, 20:00 - 08:00 (phone and IM service)
- Sunday, 20:00 - 01:00 (IM service only)
Writing for Wellbeing is a space for all students - no previous writing experience required - to take a moment away from university life and enjoy using a variety of writing-related techniques to help with our emotional and mental health.
Have questions, suggestions or just want to register your interest? Contact us at accessability@exeter.ac.uk.
We're really keen to hear from students about what this group might look like in future, whether that's running online sessions outside of term-time, or inviting special guests with expertise in certain areas. So please get in touch, drop by, and let us know your thoughts.
For now, we're working in a regular space in the Neil Cross Room, on the First Floor of the Forum Library, every Tuesday, 12-2pm. And in this space we're guiding students who might be interested in:
Reflective Writing
Keeping a diary or a journal gives us a way of assessing our beliefs and actions, helping us reflect on previous experiences and also look forward to learning from them.
Creative Writing
Poetry, fiction and illustration are all great ways for our imagination to work on our experiences, and explore thoughts, ideas and feelings. They can provide us with a new way of thinking about ourselves, or of communicating with others.
Writing for Self-Awareness
Why not take time to write down and think through a recent experience, and reflect on it? You might know what and how you want to write, or you may benefit from the suggestion of a prompt, like "What drew your attention on your walk to the group today?", or "How does your room currently reflect the moment you are experiencing?"
The Wellbeing Hub is a web-based resource run by the Exeter Student's Guild.
It is packed with wellbeing resources, events and services to support you and your health and wellbeing whilst at university.
Follow this link to view this helpful webpage.
This scheme offers support for 1st year undergraduate students with a disability, pre-arrival and throughout the academic year, as part of the transition to university. These 'Mentees' will be matched with 'Mentors' (2nd-final year students with a disability) after A-level results day; but if you would like to get involved in the scheme at any stage as a Mentor or Mentee, please email Peer Support (peersupport@exeter.ac.uk).
You can find out more about this scheme and other peer mentoring schemes on offer, including discipline-specific schemes, on the Peer Support website.
Please note: While they will support you with this transition, please be aware that Mentors do not replace paid teaching staff and so please seek advice from the relevant support services at the University where needed.
For any students who have or suspect they have ADHD, there is peer support available. The ADHD Peer Support group is student-lead and meets every Thursday 7-8pm during term time in the Neil Cross Room in the Library at Streatham Campus. There are also online meetings that run at the same time once every month. Please check out the Students' Guild website for the group for links to socials where there will be regular updates.
Meetings will be led by student facilitators and will involve group discussions around ADHD and its impacts, providing a space to share experiences and advice.
