Support At The University Of Liverpool

The University offers a range of support services to ensure that you have the best possible student experience during your studies. The Student Welfare Advice and Guidance (SWAG) website provides information on how the University of Liverpool can support you. Click here to go directly to their site. You can also stay updated through their dedicated Twitter page. Below are just some examples of the kind of support that you can benefit from:

Disabled students When we use the term disability it is intended to include, but is not limited to, students with physical and sensory impairments, long-term medical conditions (e.g. epilepsy, diabetes, cancer, Crohn’s disease), mental health difficulties, autistic spectrum disorder and specific learning difficulties (e.g. dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia).

If you are concerned that your disability is affecting your attendance or performance you can contact the Disability Advice and Guidance (DAG) team by email: disteam@liverpool.ac.uk or telephone: 0151 794 5863. Alternatively, you can attend the team’s daily Drop-In service, based in the Alsop Building on University Square.

DAG provide a confidential one-to-one appointment to discuss relevant funding opportunities and access appropriate reasonable adjustments. You can also loan specialist equipment and software and will be assigned a dedicated named contact within DAG to support you throughout your studies.

Once support is in place you will also be assigned a Disability Contact within the School of Psychology to discuss how support is implemented on a School level. Currently this is Dr Susan Giles for Year 1 and 2 (spgiles@liverpool.ac.uk) and Dr Warren Donnellan for Year 3 onwards (wjd@liverpool.ac.uk).

If you think that you require disability support, you should contact DAG by November (Semester 1) or March (Semester 2). Click here to visit the DAG webpage for more information.

Students with caregiving responsibilities A carer is anyone who cares unpaid, for a friend or family member, who due to illness, disability, or a mental health problem cannot cope without their support. A Young Adult Carer is a person aged 14 – 25 who fits these criteria.

In order to access support, you will need to register with Money Advice and Guidance. You can contact the team by email: carers@liverpool.ac.uk or telephone: 0151 794 5863. Alternatively, you can attend the team’s daily Drop-In service which is based in the Alsop Building on University Square.

Once registered, a member of the team will arrange a confidential one-to-one appointment to confirm your eligibility for the Carer’s Bursary and again access appropriate reasonable adjustments. You will be assigned a dedicated named contact within Money Advice and Guidance to support you throughout your studies.

You will then be assigned a Carer Contact in the School of Psychology to discuss how support is implemented on a School level. Currently this is Dr Warren Donnellan (wjd@liverpool.ac.uk). Click here to visit the Student Carer webpage for more information.

What are ‘reasonable adjustments’? Adjustments to teaching and learning such as coursework extensions, extra time in exams, extended library loans, etc. The aim of reasonable adjustments is to achieve an equitable student experience for all of our students.

Reasonable adjustments will be reviewed annually to establish any change in support needs. In addition the student can request a review at any stage during the year if they feel something has changed.

Care leavers A care leaver is someone who has spent time in the care of a Local Authority before the age of 18, where the Local Authority had parental responsibility for the child in absence of biological parents or extended family.

You will be contacted individually by the Money Advice and Guidance team prior to starting your course. The team arrange an appointment for the start of the year to check eligibility for the Care Leaver Bursary and offer further support. You will be assigned a dedicated named contact at this stage to support you throughout your studies.

You can access support once you start the course by contacting the Money Advice and Guidance team by email: cls@liverpool.ac.uk or telephone: 0151 794 5863. Alternatively, you can attend the team’s daily Drop-In service, based in the Alsop Building on University Square.

You will be assigned a Care Leaver Contact in the School of Psychology to discuss how support is implemented on a School level. Currently this is Dr Warren Donnellan (wjd@liverpool.ac.uk). Click here to visit the Care Leaver webpage for more information.

Don’t be a stranger!

At the University of Liverpool we are committed to working with and supporting you, both prior to entry and throughout your studies. There is a lot of support on offer but we can only help you if you come forward and speak to us.

Contribution by Dr Warren Donnellan, Lecturer and School of Psychology Disability Lead at The University of Liverpool.

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