Working with the University’s Disability Advisory Service (DAS) and within its Common Framework for Supporting Disabled Students, Balliol seeks to overcome barriers students face in relation to their studies at Oxford and take steps to remove them where possible. A disability is any impairment, physical or mental, that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on the ability of a person to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
The College is always willing to make provision and provide support for students with disabilities. If you have a disability, specific learning difficulty (SpLD) or long-term health condition we encourage you to declare this, confidentially, so that you can benefit quickly from the full range of support available. You can do this by following the DAS Registration Process. DAS has provided a short guide to disability provision at Oxford, which includes a flowchart, outlining the usual journey of a student with disabilities from the point of application to course completion; this document can be found here.
The Student Finance and Support Administrator, Fiona Chippendale, is the College’s Disability Coordinator and the principal point of contact for providing information and support to students. Together with the Senior Tutor/Academic Registrar and Tutor for Graduates (Nicola Trott), who has oversight of provision for students with a declared disability, and the Domestic Manager (Keeley Mortimer), Fiona is pleased to discuss any potential requirements at any stage of your studies.
We encourage students with disabilities to declare them at the earliest possible opportunity to ensure that any appropriate support can be put in place in a timely fashion. We would recommend offer holders to contact DAS by email prior to your arrival in Oxford or once you are enrolled on course:
- Complete the DAS registration form
- Update the disability field on Student Self Service if you are a matriculated student; DAS will then contact you directly to explore your support requirements
- Contact the College Disability Coordinator
DAS also offer student drop-in sessions (weeks 1–8 inclusive) for quick queries at Worcester Street. These sessions offer short 10-minute appointments for students to talk with a disability advisor. Further information available on the DAS web page.
If a student chooses not to inform the College of any requirements related to disability and a matter arises during studies or examinations, it may not be possible to make adjustments straight away. If you are in any doubt, please speak in confidence to Fiona.
Further information
Further information and advice is available on the University’s disability web pages. The College Handbook contains useful information.