The Equality Act (2010) defines disability as "a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities." We support students with a wide range of health conditions, including Crohn’s, epilepsy, fibromyalgia, and more.
Support provided at GCU GCU is committed to providing an inclusive student experience. The Disability Team seeks to promote a learning environment that minimises barriers faced by disabled students and reduces the instances in which students have to disclose their impairment and in which individual adjustments are required.
There is a variety of inclusive support available to students at GCU with long-term health conditions that can help you manage the impact of your condition on your studies. In addition to this, the Disability Team can assess your needs and make recommendations for reasonable adjustments, where required.
Learning development centres
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Each school has a Learning Development Centre (LDC) which provides study skills advice and support. This is an inclusive service which provides support for all students, including disabled students.
The LDCs provide this support via a variety of methods including workshops; small group sessions and 1-to-1 appointments. Find out more at the Learning Development Centre (LDC) webpages.
Personal tutor
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All students are assigned a Personal Tutor. This will provide you with a point of contact should there be any issues arising on your course, as well as providing opportunities to reflect on your progress and a plan to develop your academic and other skills further.
Counselling
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There are a variety of people in the Student Wellbeing Team who can provide support. Counselling involves a series of confidential sessions where the counsellor/therapist and student will explore the student’s issues or concerns. Many students benefit from exploring their emotions, thoughts, and behaviours in the confidential counselling setting. Students can self-refer to the GCU Counselling Team
Mental health advisors
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There are a variety of people in the Student Wellbeing Team who can provide support. The role of the Mental Health Advisers is to support students who may be experiencing emotional or psychological distress or personal difficulties. They can provide interventions, offering advice and guidance, and signposting/referring to therapeutic and medical services when appropriate.
The disability team
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The Disability Team provide advice and support to students and applicants with a long-term health condition. Students who engage with the disability team are able to meet with a Disability Adviser who can provide advice, information and asses your needs in order to make recommendations for reasonable adjustments and organise support where required. Examples of reasonable adjustments that may be recommended include alternative exam arrangements and access to assistive technology.
Student wellbeing advisors
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Student wellbeing advisers can offer practical and emotional support to students experiencing difficulties that are impacting their studies and/or mental health and wellbeing. Student wellbeing advisors often run wellbeing activities and workshops and can liaise with other university services such as the Arc gym.
Assistive technology
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All GCU students have access to software aimed at supporting academic studies. The following software may be of particular benefit to students with ADHD:
Texthelp Read&Write Read&Write is a literacy support tool that offers help for everyday tasks with tools like reading text aloud, understanding unfamiliar words and proofing written work. All GCU students can download the Chrome plugin version of Read&Write which gives you access to almost all the key features of the software. On campus, you can use the desktop version of Read&Write too.
Here is the link to download Read&Write for Chrome: Download Read&Write Chrome Plugin
Mind Mapping with Mind Genius Mind Genius is a mind mapping software tool we recommend at GCU. Mind mapping is useful for planning and structuring your written assignments or presentations. If you are easily distracted, and study best in shorter bursts of activity, a mind map makes it much easier to return to return to your assignment and pick up from where you left off. It’s also a useful tool for visual thinkers. You can download it for free by following the instructions via this link: Download MindGenius
If you would like any more information or require support/training in this software, please contact disability@gcu.ac.uk
Relax and renew’ library space
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The Relax and Renew (on level 0 of the Sir Alex Ferguson library) space aims to enrich the wellbeing of all our users, by providing a relaxing, contemplative space where you can take a break from your academic studies or your work day and connect with others from the GCU community. Relax and Renew aims to positively contribute to your health and wellbeing throughout your GCU experience, in which a good work and life balance and spending time with friends are essential.
External support and resources
Cancer
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Crohns
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Diabetes
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Epilepsy
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Endometriosis
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Fibromyalgia/Chronic fatigue/long COVID
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MS
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Migraines
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