Learning Support

This is a service offered at UCFB to ensure that students who require additional support for a disability, long-term medical condition, specific learning difficulty or mental health need receive help to apply for and access their entitlement for support, and any reasonable adjustments available throughout their studies.

Students with a Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) entitlement will have a recommended package of support with a chosen provider. Our experienced Learning Support Advisors offer guidance for students at every stage, from application to implementation, including helping the student to organise and access any assistive technology training or support that they have been awarded.  For formal Learning Support, evidence of a disability or long-term medical condition must be provided, however we can advise students on informal support available through our internal services, and recommend external services where required.

Each campus has dedicated Learning Support Advisors within the Student Support Team and they are based within the Student Support areas.  They can be contacted directly at learningsupport@ucfb.com for any advice, guidance or support.

Applicants need to declare any needs on their UCAS application.

We encourage applicants to complete the DSA applications immediately after their Student Finance forms have been submitted. You can find the forms here.

The Learning Support Team at UCFB advise students around the type of evidence that may be required when submitting an application for support, and can discuss the process of being formally assessed for support if that is also necessary. If support is going to be required for September, an early application for DSA is recommended.

Once the DSA application has been accepted, the assessment process takes approximately 10-12 weeks.  Early applications are advised.

The wellbeing of our students is very important to us, and the Student Support Team work with students on a one-to-one basis to ensure that the support package that they receive meets their individual needs.  We work closely with mental health, counselling and crisis services locally to ensure that students can access free, specialist support during term-time, as well as assisting students who may need to access services outside of the local UCFB areas.