Addressing disparity of support

Co-creating continued professional developments and guidelines on reasonable adjustments with disabled students
Addressing disparity of support logo
Title: Addressing disparity of support: Co-creating continued professional developments and guidelines on reasonable adjustments with disabled students
Funded by: Office for Students
Funding amount: £174,000
Location: University of Plymouth, University of Birmingham, and University of Wolverhampton
Dates: 2025–2027
University of Plymouth PI: Professor Suanne Gibson
External Co-I: Dr Francesca Peruzzo (University of Birmingham) and Professor Zeta Williams-Brown (University of Wolverhampton)
University of Plymouth Post-Doc RF: Dr Kathrin Paal
 
This Office for Students funded project addresses persistent inequalities faced by disabled students in higher education through a participatory approach centred on lived experiences. Despite extensive research documenting challenges in provision and representation, the Office for Students reports continuing attainment gaps, with disabled students experiencing lower degree outcomes and higher withdrawal rates.
Working in partnership with undergraduate disabled students across three institutions (University of Plymouth, University of Birmingham and University of Wolverhampton), this project focuses on students' experiences of Reasonable Adjustment Plans in both academic and personal support contexts. It recognises that while educational adjustments have received attention, the effectiveness of personal adjustments remains understudied.
The project introduces several innovations:
  • prioritising user-led knowledge through genuine partnership with disabled students as co-researchers,
  • employing flexible, mixed-methods data collection that accommodates individual preferences, and
  • establishing collaboration between universities and disability-led organisations (Disability Rights UK and Disabled Students UK) to combine academic expertise with lived experience.
Key outputs include national, freely accessible continuing professional development programmes for higher education staff, focusing separately on academic and student services support. These will be informed by disabled students' experiences, staff perspectives, and attitudinal surveys. Additionally, we will develop sector-wide university guidelines for equitable progression and create an "inclusion by design" approach.
All resources will be housed on an Office for Students platform, ensuring sustainability and sector-wide accessibility. Through this approach, the project aims to eliminate degree outcome gaps for disabled students and transform institutional practices to create more equitable higher education experiences.

Project timeline

Co-researcher recruitment and research tools development

February – June 2025

Sample population recruitment and dissemination of surveys

June – December 2025

Data analysis, workshops, CPD design and rollout

December 2025 – June 2026

Evaluation and dissemination of results

June 2026 – February 2027

The co-creation of research like this is incredibly important for the future of research. Through collaboration, we have [...] seen massive gains and connections, and ideas and concepts feel more interconnected. Each of us has brought out unique expertise and focus which have allowed the scope of the project to be more encompassing than I had expected could be possible.

Student Co-researcher
 

Working in collaboration with:

The team