Dyslexia and other Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLDs)

Nottingham Trent University is committed to providing a fully inclusive learning environment for all students.

The Dyslexia & SpLD Team

The Dyslexia & SpLD Support Team offers advice and support to students with:

• Dyslexia
• Dyspraxia
• Dyscalculia
• Irlen Syndrome
• Slow processing
• previous exam arrangements through a Form 8

The team of experienced professionals understand the many positives of SpLDs, and the areas where assistance may be useful to allow you to make the most of your university studies. They will be your key point of contact while studying at NTU, and can support you to get an Access Statement in place, as well as arranging your support needs.

We offer advice on:

• Applying for Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) to fund your support
• Exam and coursework arrangements
• How to access academic support within NTU, e.g., Library Study Support

If you have not declared any disability to the University either through application or enrolment, you may have missed out on support you could be eligible for. You can refer yourself into our service at any time by completing the Support and Wellbeing Form.

Access statements and exam arrangements

Your access statement details any reasonable adjustment that we have recommended for you to support your studies and will be shared with your academic school and the exams team at NTU. Visit our webpage about access statements to find out more information.

Your disability officer can set up an access statement for you in an advice session if you have evidence of your diagnosis or referral for a diagnosis. Please book an advice session to set up your access statement and send in your evidence of a diagnosis.

If you have no formal diagnosis but have had exam arrangements at school or college, then they will have completed a Form 8 to put these in place. We will need a copy of your Form 8 from your previous school/college indicating that you had exam arrangements before we put these in place at university.

If you do not have, or cannot find evidence for your dyslexia, you can book a "Think you're dyslexic?" appointment to get a screener.

Please be aware that if we have not had your medical evidence by the end of February, you may not get your arrangements put in place for the end of year exams.

If you already know what works for you, you can create your own Access Statement.

If you think you might need in-person or technology support, you must apply for DSA if you are eligible, otherwise you will not have access to this support. You will need evidence of a diagnosis to apply for this.

Specialist DSA funded support at NTU is provided through a mix of internal support and external agency support. Some students will have NTU as a provider and some will have external agency support.

As a student with an SpLD, you may be eligible for a Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). DSAs are intended to cover any extra costs or expense that arise because of your disability while studying, as well as recommending and funding any non-medical helper (person) support you might need.

If you think you might need:

• a weekly check in,
• support with writing assignments,
• planning and structuring your work,
• organisation and time management,

you need to apply for this in advance through DSA, preferably before you start your studies as the application can take a while.

What evidence do I need to apply for DSA?

Dyslexia

This will be a full diagnostic assessment written by a qualified assessor who holds an approved qualification and is either:

• A specialist teacher assessor holding a current SpLD Assessment Practising Certificate (APC); or
• A practitioner psychologist registered with the HCPC

Dyspraxia

If you have been diagnosed with dyspraxia, or have been referred and are on a waiting list, we will need written confirmation from a medical professional or a GP with a clear indication of the impact on your studies. Alternatively, you can take this form to your GP and ask them to complete it for you.

Please note that you will be unable to apply for DSA with a Form 8 or a Dyslexia Screener as the DSA will not accept this evidence as the equivalent of a diagnosis.

Diagnosis at University

Book a "Think you're Dyslexic?" advice session to find out about Dyslexia screening if you think you may be dyslexic and do not have a diagnosis.

If you are an applicant and you think you may be Dyslexic, you can also book a "Think you're dyslexic?" appointment to discuss having a screening test.

However, we strongly advise you get a full diagnostic assessment before you start at university as waiting until you get here could delay your support being put in place by up to a year.