Understanding institutional provision for students with mental health problems/physical impairments

IES was commissioned by HEFCE to carry out case study research with higher education institutions and further education colleges. The research aimed to understand how support was provided and funded for students with severe mental health problems and/or complex physical impairments where intensive or multi-agency support was required.

The research was carried out from September 2014 to March 2015. Working in partnership with Researching Equity, Access and Partnership (REAP) at Lancaster University, IES made case study visits to 12 higher education institutions and further education colleges to speak with a wide range of staff to explore their approaches to providing and funding support, in light of rapid growth in the numbers of students declaring a disability.

The research was designed to be used by HEFCE to provide government with evidence-based advice to support policy development.