The Disability and Mental Health Service offers support and advice to current students, prospective students and offer holders, and parents and guardians.

Current students

Our service supports current and prospective students who have a disability (including Long-Term Health Condition, Mental Health Conditions and Specific Learning Differences (SpLD’s)) to access appropriate study-related support. This includes Undergraduate and Postgraduate students as well as Home, EU or International Students. You can declare your Disability to us at any point during your studies at Kingston University.

Disclosing does not mean you will be treated unfavourably or face discrimination. On the contrary, it enables us to ensure you are provided with the support that you are entitled to during your time here.

Parents, Guardians and Trusted Contacts

We understand as next of kin, you will want to be involved in your child’s application process to Kingston University and will naturally be concerned for their welfare once they arrive. We offer general advice to parents and guardians to help both you and your child make the transition to independence at Kingston University. However, the student will need to provide us with written consent in order to share any specific information with parents, guardians or trusted contacts.

The two key differences between school support and University support are:

• The responsibility lies with the student to be proactive about their support needs
• Support arrangements are not put in place automatically

The UK’s Equality Act (2010) defines disability as a “physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.”

The law says that, where a disabled person is placed at a substantial disadvantage in comparison to non-disabled people, bodies such as the University have a duty to make “reasonable adjustments” to try and help overcome that disadvantage. This duty applies to provisions and practices such as examinations and teaching materials, through to the accessibility of venues and buildings.

We see students with a range of difficulties including but not limited to:

• Autism spectrum condition (ASC) and other social communication difficulties
• Dyslexia, dyspraxia, AD[H]D and other specific learning differences
• Mental health conditions
• Mobility impairments including wheelchair users
• Sensory impairments, including visually impaired, D/deaf or hard of hearing
• Long-term medical conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes, HIV, chronic fatigue

We offer a wide range of services in order to help you make the most of your university experience. Many of the answers to your questions can be found here on our website and in our FAQs but if you have any queries, feel free to contact us.

We would encourage all prospective students and offer holders to get in touch with our service as early as possible in the application process. This gives you the best chance of getting all the support you need in place before you start your course.

What can you expect from Kingston University?

When you disclose your disability to the University, either through UCAS or directly, our service will begin contacting you about the next steps they need to take in order to get support in place.

Please note that declaring your disability on your application form will not mean support is automatically put in place for you. All students will need to be registered with our service to receive support.

Our service will guide you through the process of getting support in place, giving you all the information, support and advice, you need to make the best decisions moving forward.

Developing independence

Part of the student experience at Kingston University involves developing independence as part of the transition into adulthood and the Disability and Mental Health Service aims to aid this development.

Managing new situations which are part of University life will help you to develop the skills that you need to take on responsibility for yourselves throughout your studies and working lives.

What can Parents Do?

You can encourage your child to register with the Disability and Mental Health Service and where applicable, apply for the Disabled Students’ Allowance and personal care support via their local authority as early as possible. The paperwork can be complex, and they may need some support with this.

Encourage your child to start thinking about the support they will need, taking into account what has happened at home, school and college in the past. While the support offered at University is different, this will help them be more confident in discussing their needs.