Cambridge University ranked worst in new report for support for disabled students

• Andy Ward reports for ITV News Anglia on Disabled Students UK's latest findings

Cambridge University has been ranked the worst in the country for the support it offers its disabled students, a new report has found - with just one in four feeling the university had made the adjustments they required.

Disabled Students UK's Access Insights Report surveyed more than 1,200 students from over 80 universities across the country, on issues ranging from exams and assessment to physical accessibility and staff attitudes.

Fourteen universities generated enough responses to be directly compared, painting what the report's authors called "a pretty bleak picture" of the disabled student experience.

The report showed Cambridge ranked lowest in five out of seven categories, including:

• 27% felt they had adequate support to access their course on an equal footing, compared to 37% nationally;

• 37% said a staff member had made them feel unwelcome due to their disability, compared to 25% nationally;

• 45% said they had been given enough information about available adjustments, compared to 53% nationally.

The university said it continually reviewed its provision for disabled students and was committed to "ensuring equal access to education and experience".

Anna Araya Cardoso Munt, who graduated from Cambridge in the summer and founded its ADHD Society, told ITV News Anglia she struggled to find and access resources including mentoring, study skills and mental health support.

The 22-year-old said: "The help that's available isn't well signposted at all.

"And I think in part that's why it's able to continue, because if all the students who need that support were able to access it, the system would become overwhelmed."

She added she lost much of the support she had received during her undergraduate degree when she started her master's because she had to deal with a different system.

"The support is so variable depending on how you're paired with, who's your tutor, who's your supervisor," she said.

"It's so important with ADHD that your support is hands-on, because otherwise it doesn't allow for the variations in support that you need."

Cambridge performed above the national average in terms of its provision of recorded lectures and the proportion of students who feel part of a community.

It met the national average for the number of students who felt there was a member of staff they could turn to about accessibility barriers, though this was still the lowest score.

In a statement, a University spokesperson said: "We take the views of our disabled students seriously.

"The sample size of 138 people for this survey represents just 2% of Cambridge’s disabled students.

"We regularly conduct higher-participation surveys and continually review our provision for disabled students.

"We are committed to responding to feedback and ensuring equal access to education and experience at Cambridge."

The report also found 78% of respondents nationally had struggled with their mental health because of their degree, and 53% with their physical health.

Mette Anwar-Westander, founder and chief executive of Disabled Students UK, said the organisation hoped universities would listen to student feedback.

She added: "The survey overall paints a pretty bleak picture of the disabled student experience.

"What's clear is that there are students out there who are really suffering.

"By acting proactively, we can change the ending to their stories."

'Dehumanising... a very upsetting experience'

The report found that disabled students elsewhere in the country also feel failed by their institutions.

While the University of East Anglia (UEA) scored at or above the national average in all seven categories, just 38% of students felt they had the adjustments they needed to access their studies on equal terms.

First-year students Osian Gold and Skye Dutton, both wheelchair users, told ITV News Anglia that broken lifts and fire evacuation concerns often prevented them from accessing a worship room where they could practise their Quaker faith.

On one occasion, the lift broke down while they and another student were on their way to discuss disability access with a chaplain.

They were stuck for more than two hours - and eventually decided to crawl up the stairs instead of being carried by security staff.

Osian, 19, said of the incident: "It's dehumanising - it was a very upsetting experience."

Skye, 20, added: "It's insulting, frankly. We're really happy that something is being done now, but the amount of effort it's taken for anything to be done is soul-consuming.

"When the university does access, they do it really well, it just needs to be prioritised."

The UEA apologised for the disruption caused by broken lifts, and said the lift at fault in this instance would be fixed in the New Year.

It added: "As with all universities, we know that there is always more we can do to support students with disabilities, and we will continue to listen to our students and staff and give them opportunities to share ideas for improvements to ensure we are providing the best possible experience for them at UEA."

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