ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´

If you are a student or applicant who has a long-term condition or impairment that has a significant impact on daily living, you are entitled to request reasonable adjustments to your studies in line with the Equality Act 2010.

The Equality Act defines 'long-term' conditions as those that have lasted (or are likely to last) around 12 months or more.

Whilst you can apply at any time, it is most beneficial to apply as soon as you receive your offer to study with us as we can then ensure your support is fully in place from day one of your course.  If applying later than that, please note that some of the support you may require could be impacted as follows:

• We have a cutoff for exam adjustments to ensure the exams team have enough time to get these in place. Alternative Exam Arrangements cut-off dates.  If applying after an exam cut-off, your exam adjustments would not be in place for the upcoming exam period but would be in place for the following exam period.
• Adjustment to timetabling, accommodation and any estates adaptations could also be delayed or may not be possible depending on when they are requested.

To access adjustments and support for disabilities and Specific Learning Differences (SpLDs), the ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´ requires students to request these by completing a 'Request Support Plan' form in NottinghamHub.  As part of this process, students will also be asked to attach supporting documentation.  When the form is complete and documentation is provided, the University has an obligation under the Equality Act to ensure appropriate reasonable adjustments have been made for the individual.

• Information on how to complete the Request Support Plan form and what supporting documents to share is available on Arrange a Support Plan.
• When you have completed the fields in the form you will be able to attach your supporting documents to it and submit.

On receipt of these items the Disability Support Services team will review the documents and if sufficient, will put in place a Support Plan which contains some initial reasonable adjustments.

NB All documentation must be provided in English.  If a translation is required, it is the individual's responsibility to arrange this with an accredited professional translation service.

The documentation you provide helps us to further understand your condition and what adjustments may be required.  The more detail we have, the better our understanding will be.

We therefore encourage all individuals to seek statements or assessment reports written by an appropriate professional so that as much information as possible is available to understand your condition/s and subsequent effects.  It can also be helpful for us to know how long any conditions have lasted.

• A report from an educational psychologist, specialist teacher, occupational therapist or equivalent  
• Reports from an appropriately qualified medical practitioner (for dyspraxia, Developmental Coordination Disorder and ADHD)
• EHC (Education, Health and Care) Plans

• A JCQ ‘Access Arrangement’ form (also known as a Form 8 or Form 9)
• A signed letter or other document from school or college on headed paper outlining any previous test results and/or description of difficulty, plus details of any adjustments made
• Support Plans (or equivalent) from previous universities that clearly identify what condition the Support Plan was put in place for and what adjustments were provided
• A Detailed Assessment of Speed of Handwriting (DASH) report
• A Disabled Students' Allowances Needs Assessment Report
• An Occupational Health Report that clearly identifies the condition/s
• For ADHD/Dyspraxia only: Recent letters and/or clinical notes / NHS App screenshots from medical practitioner consultations which provde an overview of the condition (if submitting an NHS screenshot, we would also need you to complete a 'Request Support Plan' form which acts as a declaration that the documentation is your own).

Reports must include appropriate diagnostic information of the assessment carried out.  They can be either pre- or post-16.

• Recent letters and/or clinical notes / NHS App screenshots from medical practitioner consultations which provide an overview of the condition (if submitting an NHS screenshot, we would also need you to complete a 'Request Support Plan' form which acts as a declaration that the documentation is your own)
• A completed Student Loan Company DSA medical form, signed by a medical practitioner
• A completed ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´ Medical Evidence Form signed by a medical practitioner
• An Occupational Health Report that clearly identifies the condition/s
• Letters from counselling providers or NHS Talking Therapies services that outline a condition
• Letters from medical professionals confirming referrals or appointments, discharge notes, or medical sick notes
• Letters showing use of secondary health services, such as a Community Mental Health Team or out-patient clinic for a medical condition
• DSA Needs Assessment Report
• School adjustment letter / EHCP report that clearly shows medical documentation was assessed
• Support Plan (or equivalent) from previous universities that clearly identify what condition the Support Plan was put in place for and what adjustments were provided

If you would like to find out more about whether you have a Specific Learning Difference or Autism, please read our guidance on screenings and formal assessments.

If you have been referred for an assessment by your medical practitioner already, we are aware an assessment pathway can take 12 months or more. We will therefore use the referral letter as supporting documentation.  In this instance please do upload any of the following:

• Letters from a medical practitioner, such as a consultant, GP, CAMHS or specialist nurse, confirming a referral for an assessment has been made
• Recent screen shots from NHS App of the above (if submitting an NHS screenshot, they don't typically contain your name so we would also need you to complete a 'Request Support Plan' form which acts as a declaration that the documentation is your own)

Alternatively, we could accept:

• Results from the Do-It Profiler PLUS recent written confirmation from a ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´ academic who knows your work stating that your difficulties are having a demonstrably significant and consistent impact on your day-to-day life and academic work

Occasionally, we may ask you to provide further documentation to support the assessment of how reasonable a specific adjustment may be.  If this is the case, we will work with you to provide guidance on what is required.

We need to be able to use the documentation you provide to learn more about your condition so that we can understand what reasonable adjustments may be needed.  We therefore may need to ask you to share further evidence if the documents you have provided don't provide enough information about your condition.

We also cannot accept the following:

• Pictures of injuries/health conditions/medication
• Letters from people who work in the field of complementary health practice, for example Reiki healers
• The medical documents of another person, for example a family member
• A Meares-Irlen Syndrome assessment report
• Results from a screening tool by itself, such as Do-It Profiler or QuickScan
• Letters confirming conditions that do not meet the definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010 (for example, a short-term injury or illness)
• Appointment letters where there is no detail provided about the condition

If you are facing any barriers with accessing our reasonable adjustment process, including not having any supporting documentation to provide, we want to know about it so that we can help.

We will work with you to find a way forward, please let us know and contact us.

The Heads of Service will provide support in severe and urgent situations where reasonable adjustments are required before appropriate documentation can be provided in line with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) guidance.

Please note that the Disabled Students Allowance and the University have different requirements.

For information on what documentation is accepted as part of a DSA application please see .