Find out how to tell us about a disability, so you can get the support you need.
Why you should let us know about any additional needs
You should tell us about your additional needs so we can put in place reasonable adjustments for your course.
Being linked with our team also means we can check you’re getting the right support for your disabilities throughout your time at Sussex.
You will need to tell us again about your needs when you start a new course, as your adjustments will not carry over. You won't need to provide new documentation.
What you need to provide
To be linked to our service and have your needs recorded, you need to:
- provide supporting information about your disability, learning difficulty or ongoing physical or mental health condition
- give consent for us to share your details with other teams across the University and relevant external parties.
If you don’t want to disclose details about your disability, we may not be able to put support arrangements in place.
Providing supporting information about your disability
A disability is any condition that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities (including learning). Long-term means that it has been lasting, or is likely to last, at least 12 months.
In most cases you only need to supply one piece of supporting documentation that explains your additional needs.
This is usually a:
- copy of a report or letter from your doctor, consultant or other professional
- letter through the Health Centre website, if you’re registered with this on-campus service
- evidence form you fill in as part of applying for Disabled Students’ Allowance
- diagnostic assessment provided by a suitably qualified professional
- list of previous adjustments provided by a school, college or education provider.
In some cases, it may be helpful to supply specific evidence for:
- mental health – for conditions such as depression, bipolar disorder, psychosis or an eating disorders, you can give supporting information from a mental health professional (such as a psychiatrist, social worker or psychologist)
- being deaf or having a hearing impairment – an audiogram with a letter from a consultant or audiologist
- autism or ADHD – a diagnostic report from an autism or ADHD specialist or a doctor’s letter stating that a referral for assessment has been made.
If you have a Specific Learning Difference
If you have a Specific Learning Difference (SpLD), such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia or dysgraphia, you can give us your diagnostic assessment as supporting documentation.
Find out more about Specific Learning Differences.
Is my documentation suitable?
If your documentation provides limited information about your needs, including how you are impacted, this may reduce the amount of support we can offer you and prevent us from being able to apply reasonable adjustments. Disability Advice will consider all supporting documentation that you supply, so please give us as much as possible. If you are unsure whether your supporting information is suitable, please contact disabilityadvice@sussex.ac.uk.
Giving consent for us to share your details
As well as submitting additional information about your needs, you also need to consent to us sharing your information with other University services.
These services include our Housing office, the Library, School staff, facilities workers and teams with our Student Experience division.
We may also share your details with some external organisations, such as the NHS or support agencies.
We cannot recommend reasonable adjustments if you do not provide consent or supporting information.
How to submit your supporting information and consent
Once you have everything you need, use the form below to submit your information.
This should take about ten minutes.
If it is appropriate to provide you with reasonable adjustment, these will be provided within 10 working days and confirmed via email. We may contact you to ask for more information if we cannot determine the extent of your needs.
Further help and advice
If you need advice or support you can get in touch through My Sussex.
You can also:
- come to a Disability Advisor drop-in, every Monday and Wednesday, 2pm-4pm, during term-time
- visit the Student Centre Welcome desk, 8.30am-5pm, Monday-Friday
- call 01273 075700, 9am-4.30pm, Monday-Friday.