SpLD support - reputations of different universities?

[Pickle454]

DD (diagnosed severe add/adhd) is in Yr 12 so we haven't started visiting etc yet but I am very aware that a) all university websites will pay lip service to being inclusive and offering support on their websites/at open days b) anecdotal reports online make it clear that some universities provide little/no help in reality. Can anyone with experience of this advise how best to identify which universities are likely to actually deliver (oxbridge, russell group etc, will be declaring it on UCAS)? Thanks.

I have n/c to say don't consider Warwick. My DC is there (they have ASD) and the support has been beyond shit. I will be happy if they get out alive.

DD took two years out Pickle, working for the first year near home & then did a residential volunteering post. It was really valuable for her, I don't think she'd have coped anywhere near so well at uni without that extra life experience.

She pushed for in person rather than zoom mentoring support, & did get it so worth knowing. Having said that she's so far not finding it tremendously helpful - but it's early days & hopefully she'll build a rapport with the coach (or perhaps see if she can change people). Her problem is she's very good at appearing to cope, until it all gets too much & everything falls apart - drips into a bucket is the best analogy I've seen. The various other adaptations have definitely been useful though.

DS at UCL and has ASD and ADHD. Uni was very proactive and helpful in getting a Statement of Reasonable Adjustment (SoRA) in place. However it's variable how much notice lecturers will take off it. Most will comply, sometimes after my DS has had to point out his SoRA, but on one occasion he was told by a lecturer that 'he frankly didn't care what was on his SoRA' (on a week long field trip, where SoRA said he should have his own room but had to share a small room with 6 others - be a team player he was told!) . A fellow student did complain once when her SoRA for clear, written instructions to be given for assignments was not being done, but she was told the lecturer was 'too important' to be made to do this. All pretty disappointing really.

DS has SpLD and is currently applying. Of the offers in so far, Aberystwyth has been the most proactive about offering support. They have flagged up the support network available now he has an offer. He’s really pleased that they have reached out with it, rather than him having to seek it out.

Thanks again everyone for your experiences. Taking a year out is definitely something I wish she would consider. @Dove0709 I have pm'd you. It is a minefield for all parents I know, but it all seems so much more complicated when you add neurodiversity into the mix.

Namechanged for this as it's outing... Exeter have been absolutely CRAP. Totally ABYSMAL in providing any sort of support.

DS has a SpLD (dyslexia) and awarded DSA support - equipment + (supposedly) weekly 1-to-1 study support.

He went there in Sept 2021 and has yet to have a single support session.
And this is not for want of trying/ chasing on his (my!) part.
Because exec processing is one of his issues, I've shadowed him filling in the forms and following up the emails etc.
He has done everything on time, and they keep promising that they will send him dates/appointments and NOTHING EVER HAPPENS!
They have the most bizarre case management enquiry system which seems to close every enquiry after each email, so nothing ever gets followed up?
(In fact, tragically, I think this is what happened in an awful case of an Exeter student who took his own life - he got no responses to any of the requests he sent out for help and support, and the uni blamed 'computer error' )

DS's email account is full of emails asking for an appointment and promises of 'next week'/ after Reading Week/next term... and NOTHING!

Finally, after I finally lost patience and helped him write an email asking for an explanation as to why nothing was happening, and what he needed to do to get progress, he got a reply from 'Wellbeing' [sic!] saying they were unable to offer him any support and could he contact Student Finance to ask them for a private provider outside of the university!!
So he has wasted 15 months - almost half of his uni career - when he could have been getting help, and we're back to square one.

I tried to get him to physically turn up to try to see someone make a fuss but of course, the students who need the help are also often the ones least able/comfortable in doing this kind of thing.

Honestly, it has been so atrocious that I wondered if I should write to the Head of the Wellbeing Service and ask if he was actually aware of what was happening in his department?

Only a small element but DD was at Imperial during the lockdown year, but found the "Essay Club", designed for those who struggled writing for whatever reason, either because English was second language or with dyslexia etc, really good. She claimed it was the best English teaching she had ever had.

More generally Imperial was good on admin, tutor support etc. Bristol has not been, and other than the computer, printer etc that came with her support there has not been much else. Various people involved in her teaching have not been briefed, despite the fact that her dyslexia means some aspects of her course are difficult. (Those long Latin names!)

I was talking to someone who works at Imperial who said that because of the number of overseas students who are far from home and potentially vulnerable, they are vary aware of their duty of care.

@ExeterUniMum thank you for this, but of course so sorry to hear about your DSs experience. As you say, those needing help are generally the ones who struggle to follow up on things and be persistent. It sounds appalling, I hope he has been managing ok regardless.
@Needmoresleep thank you too, and also re your feeback on Imperial. UCL and possibly LSE are on radar and I've been wary re London for a whole host of reasons but I am beginning to think that there may be some advantages despite the cost. Interested to hear from anyone else with London uni experiences?

My Dd is at York and they have been, on the whole, very helpful. As others have said, individual lecturers are variable but the support team are helpful when told about issues. When she was looking at uni choices for ucas, she emailed all the possible unis and asked what support they offered for the areas she found challenging at school - the things that stressed her the most. The replies were enlightening and some were written off based on their shocking responses! Others were really helpful and happy to discuss. We also asked the academic departments about their tutoring / supervision systems - are there regular meetings or is it just a point of contact if needed? What are their accommodation policies? Do students who need additional support have the option to stay in campus every year, rather than just 1st year? Are lectures generally available online for catch up or would she need to ask for them?

I would recommend asking lots of questions. The good ones won't mind and the less helpful ones will show themselves!

I would also recommend a gap year and getting a job. My DS (ASD) went to Uni straight from 6th form. Even with a 1:1 support mentor to check in with him twice a week and make sure he was on track/meeting deadlines, he ended up dropping out at the end of yr1 as it was all too much (STEM subject). He took a year out, worked in retail, applied to a different Uni to do a Humanities degree instead and managed fine without any support at all and went on to do a Masters. He definitely matured massively in that gap year.

DD is studying PPE at Oxford. She was diagnosed at the start of her 2nd year and hasn't applied for DSA. Her welfare support has been phenomenal.

Oxford is different to most universities as she doesn't have lectures but has to attend weekly tutorials 1 to 1 or 1 to 2 for each subject. It's brutal having to wade through the reading and write a weekly essay with ADD/ADHD, but she has flexible deadlines, extra time in exams, rest breaks in exams etc. Some tutors are more understanding than others - typically those who probably have issues themselves tend to be less flexible!

I went to Oxford and had lots of excellent support through the DSA funding but they have strict criteria - eg. diagnosis by certain professionals and within certain time frames, so be sure to check this.

I’d agree that the work load is immense at Oxford (and probably a few others too), and even with adaptations still needs to get done.

Cambridge University DRC did manage to put in place the (simple, minimal) adjustments that DS needs for ASD / ADHD / hypermobility... four terms into the course.
His college has been more prompt and proactive, but some adjustments can only be processed at DRC level.

The other difficulty DS faced is that he had to register with a local GP (college rules) who didn't seem to have much experience of ADHD. They wanted to stop his medication and gave him advice which showed a lack of understanding about how it works e.g. take it every other day. Thankfully they then referred him to the ADHD service in Cambridge who confirmed that DS is on the appropriate treatment and that it shouldn't be changed. So it's sorted now but the inappropriate advice from the GP caused him unnecessary stress as he found it difficult to challenge it.

We had the same experience with the blue badge parking ( it was all cordoned off when we got there with no marshals or anyway of accessing it!) and as a result of that and the fact that Bristol is not an easy city for someone with mobility issues my DD discounted it even though it is excellent for her course.

3 out of the 4 universities who have given offers to my DD so far have asked for her to give more information and evidence of her needs in order to plan/discuss support in advance. It will be interesting to see what this leads to.