College and Post 16

All UK universities can support you if you have special needs and disabilities.

Find a course

You can find information about all the courses available on the UCAS website.

Find the university disability officer

If you have a disability, mental health condition or learning difficulty you'll need to contact a course provider to discuss support you may need.

To find the disability officer at a university, please view the Disabled Students Allowances here at the Quality Assurance Group website.

Questions to ask when choosing a university

• does the support available meet your individual needs?
• how does the course provider support other students with a similar impairment?
• can anyone help with applications for Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs)?
• do you need to provide proof of your disability - if so, what is required?
• if you find it hard to talk to the course provider, can you nominate someone else on your behalf?

Financial support

If you are a disabled student in England, you can apply for a disabled students allowance at: https://www.gov.uk/student-finance

If you are accessing an NHS Funded course, you can apply for an NHS disabled student allowance at: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-bursary-students/check-your-eligibility-and-what-you-could-get

If you have a disability, mental health condition or learning difficulty you'll need to contact a course provider to discuss support you may need.

Further information
You will find information on accessibility, choosing courses, support and finance on the Disability Rights UK Guide for Disabled Children website.

16 to 19 Bursary Fund

You could get a bursary to help with education-related costs if you're aged 16 to 19 and:

• studying at school or college (not university) in England
• on a training course, including unpaid work experience

A bursary is money that you, or your education or training provider, can use to pay for things like:

• clothing, books and other equipment for your course
• transport and lunch on days you study or train

Eligibility

You must be:

1. under 19 at the start of the academic year you want a bursary for
2. studying at school or college, or on an unpaid training course

You could get up to £1,200 if you're disabled and get both Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit in place of (ESA), and either Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP) in your name.

Apply once you know where you'll study or train, so you'll get your bursary as soon as possible. You might need to reapply for a bursary for each year of your course. Please check with your college.

Cumbria County Council have put together a checklist to help you when visiting further education colleges:

Checklist for Visiting Further Education College

If you wish to discuss this further our SEND IAS team will be more than happy to help.