If you have ADHD, Autism, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia, or any other Specific Learning Disabilities, it’s extremely important that you get the support you need for your studies. As we start this academic year, we thought it would be a good time to share more information about getting support, specifically collecting the evidence you need for the Reasonable Adjustments for Study and Assessments scheme.
If you have ADHD, Autism, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia, or any other Specific Learning Disabilities, it’s extremely important that you get the support you need for your studies. As we start this academic year, we thought it would be a good time to share more information about getting support, specifically collecting the evidence you need for the Reasonable Adjustments for Study and Assessments scheme.
Reasonable Adjustments for Study and Assessments evidence
For a lot of conditions, you do not need a formal diagnosis. The evidence which the university accepts varies based on what condition it is for, so please read their webpage for the specific evidence needed.
Evidence can include:
Medical Evidence Form
Letter from a Doctor
Letter from appropriate medical professional
Statement of Special Educational Needs (SEN) issued by a Local Authority
Diagnostic Assessment from a psychologist or suitably qualified specialist teacher
An NHS referral for an ADHD or Autism assessment
Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) Needs Report
If any of your evidence is not written in English, you will need to provide an authorised translation alongside the original document, signed by the author.
Educational Diagnosis of a Specific Learning Difficulty
Goldsmiths is able to support students with getting an Educational Diagnosis of an SPLD. For clarity- this will NOT result in medication, but it will be recognised when seeking a RASA and DSA.
The process will cost you £90, and should take up to 7 weeks total, so if you started the process now, you could have support setup around the start of November.
This process allows you to not be on the long NHS waitlists, and will be incredibly useful to support your studies. More information about the process can be found here.
Medical Diagnosis of a Specific Learning Difficulty
You should speak to your GP about referrals to the right service for a diagnosis of the specific SpLD, as they will be able to access your records, and refer you to the right place.
If you haven’t yet registered with a GP, Amersham Vale GP Practice allows any student from Goldsmiths to register with them, even if you don’t live in the area. Oftentimes, private health insurance does NOT cover these conditions, so you would need to pay out of pocket if going private.
Right to Choose
The current NHS traditional waitlist for adult ADHD and Autism diagnosis ranges from 3-5 years in South East London. However, people are often unaware of the Right to Choose scheme, which allows you to be seen by a private provider through the NHS, without any out of pocket cost. This is available to everyone, and should be considered when trying to get a diagnosis as there are some providers with as little as a week long wait.
ADHDUK is a fantastic website which gathers all the data available and helps you to find providers with the shortest waitlists.
Click here for their data on the waitlists for providers in South East London.
You can find their full in-depth guide to the Right to Choose scheme here.
Reasonable Adjustments available
After providing your evidence to the disability services, you will automatically be given universal adjustments, including deadline extensions, extra time in exams, permissions to record lectures, and access to teaching material in advance.
There are also adjustments that will be in place for using the Library, including access to the Assistive Technology Centre (ATC), a book fetching and carry service, and access to alternative formatted resources on request.
You can request additional adjustments to be made for your studies, and a Reasonable Adjustment Support Agreement will be created in a meeting with one of Goldsmiths’ Disability Advisors that provides adjustments specific to you.