Disability liaison officer
What is the role of a disability liaison officer?
Disability Liaison Officers (DLOs) work for university disability services.
University disability services and wider student support services, help students so that they are able to do their best and achieve their goals, play a full part in university life and be well prepared for their future.
Disability liaison officers can help you with anything relating to your disability and any effects there may be on your academic work directly, within your School of Study or Faculty and more broadly in being a part of the community. Disability liaison officers can also assist you in sign-posting to other University services who can assist with specific questions or difficulties.
The help a disability liaison officer could offer you may include some or all of the following:
- Information and advice on planning for university life and study
- Specialist study skills tuition
- Access and accommodation requirements
- Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSA) applications and process
- Assessment of study support needs
- Examination arrangements
- Accessing to relevant local services and advice to your home Social Services providers
- Provision additional study support
- Loan laptops and other equipment
- Assistance for Fresher’s Week and with registration if required
- Campus orientation
- Liaison with Faculties and Schools of Study
- 1:1 confidential counselling
- 1:1 advice and guidance meetings with a mental health or disability adviser
It is important to make contact with the disability liaison officer linked to all the universities you are applying to. This is to make them aware of you so that they can make arrangements to make sure your needs can be met during your visits to the university and any interviews.
Once you have accepted a place at a university, the disability liaison officer will want to arrange a meeting with you to get a good understanding of your disability and how it affects you. This is so that any specialist equipment can be ordered and access arrangements can be made to help you during your time at university.
Depending on your disability, you may be offered help such as:
- Specialist equipment or software
- Concessions for parking
- Exam access arrangement
- Advice and support if events or things have affected your study
- Temporary mobility support
- Sticker schemes that allow you to alert those marking your work that you have a specific learning difficulty or autistic spectrum disorder
Who do they work for?
Disability liaison officers work for universities.
Who is this service for?
University disability services are available to all students who have a condition that has a 'substantial adverse effect on the conduct of daily life' ('disability' as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
How can I contact a disability liaison officer?
Search the websites of the universities you are applying to for ‘disability’. All university websites give information about their support for students with disabilities and how to get in touch.