Proof Denied - Disabled Students Struggling For Financial Support Amid Potential Change To DSA Evidence Criteria
- Megan Cushnahan
- Jan 28
- 7 min read
Updated: Nov 18
Is Student Finance England (SFE) making it harder for students to get the help they need during their time at university?
Supposed recent clandestine changes to the Disabled Students' Allowance evidence criteria has left some students struggling to get what they need for their studies
Key Takeaways
23% of students surveyed say SFE is confusing to navigate
30% of students unaware SFE offer additional financial support ie Disabled Students Allowance
Private medical letters issued to desperate Freshers DOUBLED in last year
SFE say the DSA process is currently 'too straightforward' for students
Student Beans says clearer evidence guidelines are imperative
Background
Each year, more and more students are declaring disabilities on their university applications. In the most recent data (2022), the Student Loans Company witnessed a 5.9% increase in the number of full-time students claiming Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA).
DSA is a government scheme intended to support those with disabilities during their time at university. This is separate to the loans granted from the Student Loans Company, as well as any grants or bursaries, but there are also other support packages for those with disabilities such as maintenance loans.
The aid given through DSA or other disability-focussed support depends on what would support the student best, such as travel costs, note-takers, braille paper, or ergonomic equipment.
However, the application process is becoming growingly more inaccessible due to its lack of clear evidence policies and guidelines, leaving unaware students potentially out of pocket.
Half of students who have not declared a disability cite lack of evidence as a reason, according to the Disabled Students UK's Access Insights Report 2023. Half also don't disclose their disability due to the difficulty of admin involved, whilst a third who have declared find the amount of evidence required burdensome.
DSA evidence criteria
To apply for DSA, students can currently locate the 2024/25 DSA form on their student finance account.
Section 6: Your Disability asks for general proof of disability to identify whether a student is fit for support and can be referred for an assessment:
Please give the name or diagnosis and provide photocopied evidence of your disability
Alternatively, students can work with a professional to fill out the Disability Evidence Form, which includes more detail to what must be provided:
To get DSA a medical professional (for example, your GP) needs to provide information about your disability on this form.
Don't complete this form if you have a specific learning difficulty. You need to send us a diagnostic report from a suitably qualified psychologist or specialist teacher instead.
Medical professionals completing this form on behalf of a student must confirm their certificate or registration number (GMC, HCPC, NMC) and whether they are a GP Practice, Primary Care Team, Secondary Care Team, Hospital, or other.
The form alludes it will accept multiple sources of proof of disability, as long as the professional is suitably accredited.
ZoomDoc, a leading online medical letter provider, has assessed thousands of students for medical certificates since it launched in 2022.
Dr Kenny Livingstone, Chief Medical Officer at ZoomDoc, explains SFE has begun to question its team of GPs, all of whom are NHS GMC registered and regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC):
"When we first launched, our certificates were seemingly being accepted without issue. However, as more students began to utilise the service, we started seeing increased rejections. Some of the feedback we received was that SFE felt our process was too straightforward."
Student Finance England looks to the NHS
Dr Livingstone continues: "When we were informed that students' letters were being rejected, it was due to the fact they were provided by an online GP.
"Suitably credited online medical letter providers reduce the burden on the NHS by providing a safe and convenient alternative way for patients to get equally clinically validated medical letters. So, it's frustrating SFE continue to seemingly only accept NHS evidence, going by the patient feedback we've received.
"Since launching our medical letters service in January 2022, we have directly saved NHS GPs over 8,500 hours. In most cases, we also provide medical letters at a lower cost than what NHS GP practices are advised to charge.
"SFE continuing to accept our medical letters should be a win-win all round for the NHS and students alike."
With these figures in mind, why would we look to add additional strain on GPs when there are other equally qualified medical letter providing services on offer?
Up to 17m GP appointments are taken up in the UK each year providing medical letters, but they are not considered core NHS services.
In July 2024, GPs voted for collective action to stop work they're not formally contracted to do, including the provision of some medical letters. Which is why trusted online medical letter services are integral for those who fall short of the NHS necessity list.
This is true for students especially, for whom ZoomDoc has seen an increasing level of requests for medical letters.
In 2024, ZoomDoc issued over 3,000 university sickness certificates to concerned students.
Over the past year, the amount of Freshers seeking certificates has almost doubled whilst almost half of certificates issued in this time have been for older 22-25 year old students.
However, these certificates have likely been denied if Student Finance England have continued to uphold its new and hidden 'no online GP letters' policy.
"This requirement is also particularly impractical for students living hundreds of miles away from their registered GP" continues Dr Livingstone.
This could be the reality for almost 60,000 students, a tenth of the number accepted to universities or colleges in 2024.
Asking its student users about their current GP location, 12% admitted to Student Beans they'd moved away from their previous GP and are no longer local.
For students like these, obtaining medical letters from a physical GP may be near impossible.
It's the same one from my home town, but I've moved away | 12% |
It's the same one from my home town, and I'm still living there | 61% |
I've changed it to one in my current university town | 20% |
I'm not sure what GP I'm signed up with / none of the above | 7% |
Survey of students regarding where their GP is located
Quarter of students think applying for Student Finance is a confusing process
Unfortunately, accessibility is seemingly not a priority when applying for financial support.
Whilst SFE commented ZoomDoc's processes were too straightforward, students have also countered this with remarks around SFE's application process.
A quarter (23%) say the process of applying for loans or financial support via Student Finance England is confusing, according to Student Beans' survey of its student users. One in ten (14%) also say it's difficult to navigate.
Almost a third of students surveyed (30%) said they did not know about the additional financial support offered by SFE, i.e. those which support those with a disability or dependents.
Worryingly, this already means many could be missing out on extra funding which could support them during their years at university.
Student Beans asked students, theoretically, if they thought they were eligible for additional financial support from Student Finance England (besides a loan), would they know how to apply for it.
A concerning HALF (49%) answered no, they would not.
Whilst a third (36%) noted they think they could figure out how to apply, there is clearly an accessibility and education barrier between students and the student finance process.
Do universities own the duty of care for disabled students?
Dr Livingstone also noted: "Whilst it's frustrating that our certificates are seemingly no longer being accepted by Student Finance England, we have fortunately seen that universities are becoming increasingly accepting. They recognise the struggles students face and are more accommodating when it comes to compelling personal circumstances."
So it's worth not only applying for disabled students' allowance, but also seeking out bespoke support offered by individual universities.
Some useful means of disability support and accommodations available at universities across the UK include:
Durham University – Screening for dyslexia/SpLD and referral for diagnostic assessments / An internship programme run in partnership with Careers and Enterprise for autistic students.
Huddersfield University – Autism Lunch Club / Racism and Trauma workshops
Leeds University – Braille/tactile maps of the city centre / Accessible study rooms and sports centre
Manchester University – Lunchtime social groups for students with autism / Assistive technology and software
Sheffield University – Clear and unambiguous language when marking etc and extra sessions to go through feedback / Rest breaks and support worker
Aberystwyth University – Acclimatisation Events for new students with autism or similar difficulties / Accessibility Advisers
Ulster University – ASD social group / Exam and assignment adjustments
What students want from SFE
Students are calling out the general SFE process as being confusing and difficult, let alone the more rigorous process of applying for DSA.
It's evident that students need clearer and more accessible guidelines when applying for DSA, to ensure they are properly prepared for the process.
Chloe Casanove, student expert at Student Beans, continues: "Students are struggling to access the financial support they're not only entitled to, but desperately need in order to level the playing field amongst their peers.
"We urge Student Finance England to review its evidence criteria and remove the smoke and mirrors currently leading to students unwittingly submitting rejectable applications.
"Better yet, we'd love to see SFE become more sensitive to the difficulties students are facing in securing NHS medical letters, and restart accepting credible evidence from accredited private sources.
"But with the next academic year's finance applications opening in March, SFE has to update its evidence criteria so students have enough time to apply with the appropriate proof."
Helpful Content
Methodology
Student Beans surveyed 1,484 users via its email newsletter. For the questions around using Student Finance, only the results from the 1,112 who have used SFE have been used.
For further information, data, or expert quotes, contact the Student Beans Press Office.
