This guide, produced by the Disabled Student Commitment Information Sharing Special Interest Group, examines how HEPs manage and share disability-related information, drawing on survey data, sector case studies, and practitioner expertise. Disabled students often face frustration and inequity when required to repeatedly share the same information or undergo unnecessary reassessments, highlighting the need for more consistent and effective practices.
The guide identifies four guiding principles for improvement: consistency, through streamlined systems that avoid duplication; communication, ensuring timely and effective support; choice, empowering students to control what is shared; and certainty, giving students confidence that their needs will be met without unnecessary barriers. To achieve meaningful change, HEPs should adopt whole-institution approaches, align with EHRC guidance, and embed the social model of disability.
It reflects the combined best practices of practitioners from a significant number of HEPs and beyond. It is a first attempt at summarising these and, as such, should be viewed as a living document, open to enhancement and enrichment.
