Open Letter: Withdrawal of Disability Support at the University of Derby

We are writing to raise serious and ongoing concerns about the removal of core disability-related adjustments at the University of Derby. This includes Assessed Extended Deadlines (AEDs), extra time in exams, and access to Support Plans for students with specific learning difficulties (SpLDs). These changes were introduced without formal consultation or transparent communication.

Over the past ten months, disabled students have raised concerns repeatedly through meetings, feedback, and direct contact with senior leadership. In that time, students have missed assessments, been denied support, and lost trust in the systems intended to protect them.

This is not just a failure of communication – it is a breach of legal duty. Under the Equality Act 2010, the University is required to anticipate and remove barriers before they disadvantage disabled students. Occasional meetings with small student groups do not meet this obligation. Duty cannot be discharged reactively; it must be embedded in institutional systems.

These changes have directly harmed students’ academic progress, health, and wellbeing. As Student Minds identifies in their 2024 briefing, where disabled students compensate by funnelling time and effort into maintaining academic attainment, the toll this takes on their health is grave. Outcome measures that focus solely on attainment (while ignoring disabled students’ mental, physical, and social wellbeing) fundamentally fail disabled students.

Many of us only discovered that support has been withdrawn when it is too late to seek alternatives. Many students chose to study at Derby based on the support advertised to them – UCAS (2022) found that 56% of disabled students research the support available at a university before applying. These adjustments are not optional extras. They are legal entitlements – and their removal, without demonstrably effective alternatives, places the University in breach of its duties.

The University has pointed to inclusive assessment and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as justification. But students continue to report inaccessible slides and learning materials, unavailable lecture recordings, and inflexible assessment types (particularly in professionally regulated courses). These frameworks have not been evaluated against the needs of students who previously received formal adjustments.

The Disabled Students UK 2024 Access Insights Report found:

• Only 39% of disabled students receive all the support agreed with their institution.
• 62% go without support because of the energy required to chase it.
• The most common reasons for not reporting access failures were that it took too much energy or that students feared being seen as difficult or incompetent.

These findings reflect what students in Derby are experiencing: misinformation, avoidance, and disengagement. Some now avoid the Disability Team entirely. Others have dropped out of university activity altogether.

Support Plans are inconsistently applied and poorly communicated. Even where students have Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA), recommendations for exam arrangements or extensions are often not upheld. Students with SpLDs are now excluded from Support Plans unless they have an additional diagnosis – despite the legal requirement to assess need on an individual basis. Complaints are often mishandled. Students have been required to raise concerns with the same team involved in the complaint, undermining trust in the process.

We therefore call for:

1. Reinstatement of AEDs, extra time in exams, and Support Plans for all disabled students, including those with SpLDs.
2. Accurate and timely communication to all students and applicants about what support is available and how to access it.
3. Formal consultation processes with disabled students, including the Independent Disabled Students Network, before any future changes are introduced.
4. Independent oversight of complaints, and public reporting of performance data on support services.
5. Mandatory training for all staff on Equality Act duties, University of Bristol v Abrahart, social and critical models of disability, and principles of neurodiversity.

For ten months, we have asked for action. The University’s response has been delay, dismissal, or silence.

This is not about consultation. It is about compliance. If the University of Derby wishes to rebuild trust, it must act now to restore equitable, lawful support and repair the harm already done.