Learning Support Plans

Declaring a disability process

Have you provided your disability evidence?

In order to access support, you will be asked to provide evidence both to the Disability and Learning Support team, and as part of any application for DSA (or equivalent). 

Find out more about obtaining disability evidence.

Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA)

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or long-term health condition, the Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) can help you to pay for extra costs that come as a result.

How to apply for DSA.

Who is eligible?

The following might all be eligible for a Learning Support Plan (for the exact definition, we refer to the Equality Act 2010):

Disabled students

Any named condition that lasts 12 months or more and has a significant impact on your ability to study.

Students during a period of pregnancy and maternity

LSPs will be available to students at any stage of pregnancy or within six months of having given birth.

Students with short term injuries

For students who have a one-off condition that might affect their ability to complete an assessment in a standard format. For example, if you broke your arm, you may need to use a computer instead of handwriting in an exam.

Learning Support Plan process

1. Log into Student View and agree to our data protection statement.
2. Upload evidence of your eligibility, such as your disability evidence.
3. Once completed, the Disability and Learning Support team will contact you to arrange an appointment to meet with a Learning Support Coordinator (LSC).
4. The LSC will talk to you about your needs in more detail, within the context of your course.
5. They will then draw up a Learning Support Plan with standard adjustments that can be implemented immediately without any further authorisation.

Where authorisation from your academic school is required

• When there's a health and safety implication either for you or for other students and staff on the course.

• If the recommended adjustment affects the way that you're going to be assessed and graded.

We need to ensure that you can still meet the learning outcomes of a particular module or course, and they fit within the professional body requirements if you're on a professional course.

We also need to make sure that you're going to be marked fairly when compared to other students.

• If there's a more substantial physical adaptation that we need to make to the university estate or if we need to purchase specialist equipment in order to make sure that you are supported.

In these cases, your course team might also invite you to discussions with them and your LSC, so we can find the best way forward together.

Types of adjustments we offer

Adjustments to teaching:

• ensuring lecturers are aware that you lip read
• having a seating requirement
• recommendations for specialist equipment, for example, adapted lab equipment
• timetable modifications to ensure rooms are fully accessible
• permission to use a voice recorder/audio note-taking device in lectures.

Adjustments to assessments:

• extra time in examinations
• adjusted coursework deadlines 
• alternative or adjusted modes of assessment
• alternative placement activities.

The exact recommendations in your LSP will depend both on your disability and your course requirements.

LSP examination deadlines

In order for examination adjustments to be guaranteed for each exam period, they must be approved ahead of the corresponding LSP examination deadline.

For the 2024-25 academic year, these deadlines are:

• Semester 1 LSP deadline
  LSP request and evidence to be received by – noon Thursday 5 December 2024
• Semester 2 LSP deadline
  LSP request and evidence to be received by – noon Thursday 20 March 2025
• Resit LSP deadline
  LSP request and evidence to be received by – noon Thursday 31 July 2025

If you book an appointment with our team that falls later than the approaching LSP examination deadline, we will talk to you about what interim support might still be possible. Where adjustments cannot be put in place, Additional Considerations processes will apply.

Please note that the LSP examination deadlines do not apply to adjustments relating to coursework submission or teaching adjustments, which will be facilitated as immediately as possible.

Confidentiality

Staff in the Disability and Learning Support team can assist you with your enquiries in a sensitive and respectful way.

Discussion can be confidential but this will limit the amount of academic support that we can arrange for you. There are some situations where we might not be able to maintain confidentiality (for example if you or someone else is at risk).

For more information about how we use and store your information, please see our Disability and dyslexia privacy statement (.docx).