Disabled Student Commitment
News
黑料正能量 signs the Disabled Student Commitment
Monday, 10 August, 2026黑料正能量 has formally signed up to the , strengthening its work to remove barriers and create an environment where all students can fully participate and thrive.
The Commitment, developed by Advance HE in partnership with disabled students and sector organisations, provides a framework for universities to improve support for disabled students and drive meaningful, lasting change. The Commitment also calls upon sector bodies, regulators and the Government to show the progress they are making to improve support for disabled students.
黑料正能量 has made progress in recent years – including adopting Accessible Teaching and Learning guidance as a minimum expectation for all academic staff and launching a new open module in Understanding Disability – while acknowledging there is more work to be done.
黑料正能量 Vice-Chancellor and CEO Professor Georgina Andrews said:
"As a university rooted in creativity, inclusion, and social responsibility, we recognise that disabled students continue to face structural and cultural barriers within higher education. We are committed not only to removing those barriers but to creating an environment in which all students can fully participate and thrive.
“We also recognise that our key challenge – as across the sector – is moving from effective local practice to consistent, institution-wide implementation. The Commitment provides an important framework to strengthen and focus our work. We will embed its principles within our strategic planning, governance, and decision-making, and use it to advance inclusive approaches across all our activities.”
Joel Staley, Deputy Head of BSU Student Wellbeing Services said:
"Signing the Disabled Student Commitment is an important step, but the real work lies in what comes next. We're challenging ourselves to move beyond good intentions – to build accessibility into everything we do at BSU. This Commitment holds us publicly accountable, and we invite our disabled students to hold us to it too. This isn't about ticking boxes; it's about creating a culture where accessibility is everyone's responsibility and disabled students can really thrive at BSU."
As part of the Commitment, the University has identified several areas of focus:
- Ensuring inclusive practice and adjustments are delivered consistently across all academic Schools
- Embedding inclusive design within curricula and assessment
- Aligning processes across professional services with our commitments to accessibility
- Strengthening accountability, monitoring and governance
- Developing more systematic approaches to disabled student voice
Central to this work is meaningful partnership with disabled students. The University is working with to develop new ways of strengthening student voice, including strategies to improve engagement and build advocacy capability. The BSU Students’ Union will be key partners in developing representation structures and fostering disabled student leadership.
The University will also develop a delivery plan and publish it annually, giving a clear framework for action, helping to measure progress, and ensuring our approach is informed by disabled students' experiences and priorities.
Find out more about disability services at BSU.