Reasonable adjustments

Support is available if you need it.

UWE Bristol is committed to putting in place reasonable adjustments to different aspects of your learning should you need them, if you are:

You can see what reasonable adjustments you have in place in MYUWE. If you do not have adjustments in place, read about the types of adjustments we offer and how to apply for them.

Reasonable adjustments to exams and assessment

This covers things like extra time or use of a PC in exams and the use of a reasonable adjustment to deadline for coursework submissions.

Reasonable adjustment to exams

If your online exam is scheduled over a 24 hour period, in most cases you will not receive reasonable adjustments such as extra time or rest breaks for these assessments.

For online and on campus exams reasonable adjustments will be applied, unless learning outcomes would be compromised.

Types of reasonable adjustments that we can consider are:

  • extra time
  • rest breaks
  • use of PC
  • ergonomic furniture
  • separate room
  • prompt/reader/scribe
  • using phone as glucose monitor (with phone on flight mode).

To apply for reasonable adjustments, please email your evidence to disability@uwe.ac.uk or complete our enquiry form (InfoHub login required) as soon as possible and we will get in touch with you about reasonable adjustments.

You can check if you have reasonable adjustments in place for your exams by checking Your info in MYUWE. Please note that extra time does not show on exam timetables, but if it's in MYUWE you should expect to receive it.

The deadline for submitting your reasonable adjustment request and evidence to the Disability Services for exams is:

  • Friday 29 November 2024 for January 2025 exams
  • Friday 21 March 2025 for May/June 2025 exams
  • Friday 6 June 2025 for July/August 2025 exams.

Please note that if you don’t get your evidence to the Disability Service before the relevant deadline it may not be possible to put your exam reasonable adjustments in place for the upcoming exams. However, if you become disabled, receive a diagnosis or become injured after this deadline please send your evidence as soon as possible to disability@uwe.ac.uk to explore whether it is possible for reasonable adjustments to be put in place for this exam period.

Once you are aware of the assessment method being used, if you have concerns about being able to access the assessment please liaise with the academic team to explore whether there is an appropriate alternative assessment. Where you are unable to find a solution, your teaching team can contact the Disability Service or you can make a Disability Advice appointment via an Information Point, to explore this further. Read the reasonable adjustments policy (PDF) and exams reasonable adjustment factsheet (PDF) for further information.

Emergency support

If you need emergency additional support arrangements because you've been injured or have a serious infectious illness, the University will make every effort to put adjustments in. You need to email disability@uwe.ac.uk with your evidence, stating the urgent need as soon as possible and we will get in touch with you. Or alternatively, use our enquiry form (InfoHub login required).

Ad-hoc exams

If you have any exams taking place outside of the dates mentioned above, the deadline to submit your evidence for exam reasonable adjustments is three weeks before the exam date.

How long reasonable adjustments will be in place for

Your adjustments will be in place for the duration of your course unless we tell you otherwise. If there are any discrepancies, please contact an Information Point and you can check MYUWE at any time to see what reasonable adjustments are in place.

Extra time for coursework submissions

Eligibility

You may be eligible for a reasonable adjustment to deadline for coursework submissions if you meet the following criteria.

Disabled students
  • where you have reasonable adjustments in place.
Other students

A reasonable adjustment to deadline will provide you with an additional 7 days from the original deadline in which to submit your work.

At resit, a reasonable adjustment to deadline will provide you with an additional five days from the original deadline, except for assessments contributing to the Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship, which are eligible for a three-day reasonable adjustment.

You will not be able to use the reasonable adjustment to deadline for the following types of work:
  • group work
  • assessments submitted for marking in a studio by a group of staff at a fixed time (including work for an end of term degree show)
  • practice elements of professional practice modules
  • practical skills-based work
  • where assessments are set up as timed assignments, for example computer-based examinations
  • any assessments contributing to the Graduate Diploma in Law
  • assessments limited by logistical constraints such as assessments to be completed whilst on a field trip
  • assessments with a submission date which falls after the Friday before the relevant Field Board (you can view the field board dates on the academic year calendar).

There may be other cases where a reasonable adjustment cannot be accommodated due to the nature of an assignment. You can check whether your assignment is exempt on the module Blackboard page or the assignment brief.

Request to use the reasonable adjustment to deadline

We ask that wherever possible you request to use the reasonable adjustment to deadline at least 48 hours before your assignment submission date. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to process requests that come in later than this by the deadline.

Complete the request form (InfoHub login required)

Postgraduate researchers

If you are a postgraduate researcher (PhD, DPhil, MPhil) and you are looking to use the reasonable adjustment to deadline, please go ahead and complete the form. If you are looking to discuss a reasonable adjustment to a progress review or final assessment, please contact the Doctoral Academy at doctoralacademy@uwe.ac.uk.

If your request is denied

Please double check that you meet the criteria above and have engaged with the relevant service. If you have only recently become eligible, the system may not have been updated in time for your request. In this case, please contact the relevant service (Disability service, UWE Cares or Student Support Advisers) and let them know.

If you don’t meet the criteria

There are other options if you do not meet the above criteria but have experienced something significant that affects your ability to submit a piece of coursework. Please find out more about the assessment support options available to you.

Reasonable adjustments to teaching and learning

Types of adjustments that we can put in place are:

  • teaching materials in advance 
  • permission to record lectures
  • additional library support
  • transcripts or subtitling
  • teaching room layout
  • ergonomic furniture in teaching rooms.

To apply for reasonable adjustments, please send your evidence to us via our online enquiry form (InfoHub login required) as soon as possible and we will get in touch with you. There is no deadline for this but please do this as soon as possible to give us the best chance of being able to get things in place for you.

Reasonable adjustments for professional placements

If you are on a Health or Education programme that has a professional placement element and you are a disabled student or the primary carer of a disabled person, there is support available to you.

If you have a Specific Learning Difference (SpLD) you may wish to read our SpLD placement guidance.

SpLD placement guidance

If you are concerned about your mental health on placement, please find advice and strategies in our wellbeing placement guidance.

Wellbeing placement guidance

Access to Placement Plans

If you need bespoke reasonable adjustments in order to access your placement, please speak to your tutor to request an Access to Placement Plan. They will have a detailed conversation with you to discuss any barriers to placement as a result of your disability or caring responsibility. The Disability Service will review the suggested reasonable adjustments that aim to remove your barriers to placement, and will create an Access to Placement Plan report.

In some instances, we may arrange a wider meeting with a Disability Adviser to discuss the adjustments in more detail. You will need to share the final report with each placement to discuss the adjustments needed.

Timeline for putting adjustments in place

Once we have the appropriate evidence, we can put adjustments in place for you which, for example, could include extra time in exams and permission to record lectures.

Timeline

Step one

Submit appropriate evidence or tell us why you are not able to do this.

Step two

Reasonable adjustments are put in place*.

Step three

Check your reasonable adjustments in MYUWE once you're a student.

Step four

Use our enquiry form (InfoHub login required) if your reasonable adjustments need to be changed.

*Some reasonable adjustments will be put in place automatically when we have received appropriate evidence from you. Other non-standard reasonable adjustments may need to be discussed with your College and other UWE Bristol services. We may also need to speak with you about these.

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