Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-02-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the health status of low-income university students in comparison to other university students.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

We have made no specific assessment of that issue. However, whilst higher education is an adult environment, it is a long-established principle that universities have a duty of care to their students.

Where health issues are related to a disability, universities have a legal duty under the Equality Act 2010 to provide reasonable adjustments for disabled students and to monitor their compliance with their Equality Act duties. The Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 require institutions to publish information as to their compliance with the general public sector equality duty.

There is a range of guidance and support available to institutions on supporting students with mental health conditions from a range of sector and medical bodies including Universities UK (UUK), the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) and the Association of Managers of Student Services in Higher Education (AMOSSHE).