This article will focus on how to discuss reasonable adjustments during your time at University. The University has a duty under the UK Equality Act 2010 to implement reasonable adjustments where disabled students experience substantial disadvantages in comparison with non-disabled people.  Universities have an anticipatory duty to provide reasonable adjustments for students.

Reasonable adjustments can be defined as ‘changes in approach or provision to ensure services are accessible’ (Public Health England, 2020). Reasonable adjustments enable you to participate in the academic assessment process on a fair basis.

Reasonable adjustments can be discussed if your disability, long-term health condition, mental health condition or specific learning difference creates challenges in accessing the same facilities and services as your non disabled peers. Reasonable adjustments are designed to allow you to fully participate in learning, assessment, university facilities and services. Reasonable adjustments are discussed and recommended on an individual case-by-case basis at the University.

How do I request reasonable adjustments?

If you share your diagnosis with the University of Southampton before you arrive, it is likely that you will be invited to our Transition Programme.

As part of the Transition Programme we will ask you to complete the Request for Support form so we can find out more about your condition and how it impacts you and your study day to day. We will use the information you provide in the form to consider appropriate adjustments for your learning, teaching sessions, exams, and assessments.

It is important to note, students can request support and adjustments at any point during their studies, and they can do that with and without a formal diagnosis.

What information do I need to provide in the Request for Support form?

We will ask about your health and previous education, so we recommend finding a quiet space to complete the form fully. You can always start the form and return to it later, if needed.

Any information you enter will be retained as a draft, allowing you to continue where you left off. We will only receive your information once you submit the completed form.

We will use the information you provide to consider appropriate adjustments for your learning, teaching sessions, exams, and assessments. Throughout this form, these are referred to as Student Support Recommendations (SSRs) and Additional Exam Recommendations (AERs).

Depending on your individual circumstances and support needs, you may receive SSRs in a form of a Student Support Recommendations document, AERs, or both. These will be shared with your Faculty and other relevant university staff (such as your lecturers, Personal Academic Tutor, and teams including Exams and Timetabling) to ensure that staff involved in supporting you have the information they need to put your agreed adjustments in place.

What happens after I complete the Request for Support form?

After you have completed the form, we will aim to process your support adjustments as quickly as possible. Please be aware that this can take a few weeks, so please only follow up if you have not heard from us after 4 weeks. We will contact you by email once we have processed your form.

In many cases, we will be able to assess your support needs and put your recommended adjustments in place without meeting you. Sometimes we will ask you to attend an appointment with one of our practitioners, if we think it would be helpful to discuss your circumstances further.

If an appointment is asked of you, you are welcome to bring your supporter (such as a parent, guardian or carer) with you to join the session.

What could reasonable adjustments look like?

Reasonable adjustments are recommended on a case-by-case basis and will rely upon supporting information provided by the student. However, when it comes to assessments, for example, some reasonable adjustments could include:

• an alternative mode of assessment
• having extra time in an examination
• presenting to a smaller group rather than in front of a group.

How would I share my diagnosis with the University before I start?

In order for the Student Disability and Inclusion Team at the University to offer you support for your diagnosis before you start your course, we would need this information to be shared with us. Once you have received an offer to study at the University, you will be sent a link to our Health Questionairre. This is separate from UCAS. It is created by the University and shared only within the University of Southampton. Based on the information shared in the questionnaire, you could then be invited to our Transition programme and to complete the Request for Support form. Transition typically start around mid-late August before beginning your course in September/October.

How do I contact the Student Disability and Inclusion Team at the University if I have already started my course?

You can still complete the Request for Support form to provide us with information about your needs. If you already met with the team and want to review the support in place, complete the follow-up appointment request.

In addition:

• You can visit the Student Hub (Building 37, Highfield Campus) between 9am-5pm Monday-Friday.
• You can call the team between 9am-5pm Monday-Friday via the Student Hub (02380 599 599).
• You can email the team on studenthub@soton.ac.uk

• Negotiate your reasonable adjustments, rather than taking them as they come – what works for you individually?
• Consider what support has helped you previously – through school/sixth-form, if applicable. This can be discussed with the Specialist Practitioner. Although support will likely be different at University, this can help inform the recommendations and support signposted for you.
• When considering how you will access assessments, Specialist Practitioners can liaise with your faculty about learning outcomes, they may consider- what are alternative ways for you to evidence your knowledge and understanding?
• Remember that the Student Disability and Inclusion Team is always there to support you, but they won’t necessarily know the academic requirements. They will work with liaising with your faculties when making recommendations but it may be that some of these cannot be implemented. In these instances, an alternative will be sought.
• Use the Autism&Uni Best Practice Guides as support (see page on UDL)
• Reply promptly to all communications regarding your support and reasonable adjustments, to ensure support is put in place when it’s needed. It is best practice to share your communication preference with the team when you meet with them. For example, phone calls may be difficult for you, so you can ask that you are contacted in the first instance by email/text.
• If it is helpful for a third-party to contact us regarding your support at University (e.g. a parent/carer/supporter), you will need to have completed the third-party consent form.
• More information about third party consent at the University of Southampton can be found by visiting this webpage.

Transition to University of Southampton: Transition Programme | Student Disability & Wellbeing | University of Southampton

The Equality Challenge Unit has published guidance on reasonable adjustments to assist universities in planning and implementing them: http://www.ecu.ac.uk/publications/managing-reasonable-adjustments-in-higher-education/

References

Public Health England (2020) Reasonable adjustments: A legal duty, GOV.UK. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reasonable-adjustments-a-legal-duty/reasonable-adjustments-a-legal-duty (Accessed: 15 April 2024).

Originally published by Autism&Uni on 19th July 2017. Updated by Anna McCann, University of Southampton, (July 2026).