The Student Loans Company Refuses to Comply with Discrimination Legislation. Their Unwillingness could Cost me my Education.

On July the 18th I published a blog post entitled Despite Covid19, Student Finance England Continues Discriminatory Application Process in which I outlined ongoing problems I was having obtaining a Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) application form in an accessible format. I’m a blind user of assistive technology and I required the form in a format I could interact with using a screen-reader, a specialised piece of software which gives me access to visual content on the screen. When applying for a student loan you are invited to complete an online application consisting of a web form, which is fully accessible to screen-reader users. However, if you indicate that you are disabled, you will be directed to print off and fill in by hand the application form for DSA.

DSA provides disabled students with equipment and human support at university. This can include electronic braille devices, software packages, note-taking services, transcription and orientation and mobility training. There is no way that I will be able to complete a master’s degree without access to these services. It is also essential that the support is in place before my course start date in January. I will need to learn the layout of the campus, familiarise myself with any technology and potentially recruit individuals who will be working with me.

I emailed the DSA team to request the application form in an alternative format and was told that this was not possible. I can receive a copy of the form in braille, but must send back the completed print form. I engaged in a back and forth with the student loans company, outlining why this would not be possible for me. I was supported by another disabled person who has extensive advocacy experience and after both of our efforts, the student loans company (SLC) agreed to complete the form with me over the phone. It was at that point that I published the blog post outlining my struggle.

Since then, the process has only become more complex. On the day I was supposed to receive a phone call from SLC they sent me an email, admitting that they did have a copy of the application form in word. I first requested the DSA application in an alternative format on the 7th of July and it was not until the 22nd of July that I was told that this was possible. In the interim they had claimed that this was not something they provide or even have available. It took fifteen days for them to admit that they had a copy of the form on their system and to agree to send it to me.

When I opened the application form in Word, I discovered that it contained multiple text boxes and tables with mixed merged columns. There was no way of telling which questions corresponded to what answers. It appeared to be a poor imitation of the previously inaccessible PDF, only in Word this time. I reached out to Natalya (who was assisting me advocating for equal access) and she was able to put the form into a format in which I could access. All of the questions stayed the same, the changes were purely regarding the layout of the form. Questions were still laid out in a table, with a column for the questions and another for the answers. I filled out this form and emailed it to the DSA team along with required proof of disability.

In the meantime myself and another blind student had decided to send SLC a letter before action. This letter clearly outlines the ways in which current provision violates the Equality Act. We requested that SLC comply with existing law, as well as digital accessibility guidelines which will soon be coming into force. We do not want to take the student loans company to court. It is time consuming and stressful. But we will do it if it means other disabled people will not have to face these challenges in future. As of publication, we have not received a response from SLC.

On the 8th of September I received a response relating to my DSA application. A member of the DSA team at SLC emailed me to say that my application could not be processed because they will only consider applications using the form they provide. In some ways I understand this response, continuity is important. However, after multiple requests for an accessible form I still hadn’t received one and proceeded in the only way I knew how. It is also worth remembering that the form I sent in contained the exact same content as their application, with cosmetic changes only.

I responded to their email and am waiting for them to contact me. It has been 64 days since I sent the first request for an accessible application form. I still need my application to be approved, to attend a needs assessment, for the needs assessor to produce a report of recommendations, for SLC to approve those recommendations and for support and equipment to be arranged. Had I received appropriate access to the application when I first asked for it, we would be well on our way to ensuring I can start university in January with the support I need.

SLC is a non-departmental company which is owned by the government. Yet they do not consider it a priority to comply with UK equality law at even the most basic level. The request I made is not cost prohibitive or complex, in short it is extremely reasonable. They already have an existing online application, which all students seeking financial support must complete. In an ironic twist it is only the disability specific application that I am unable to access. Blind and other print disabled students face these barriers every year when applying for support. It is a disgrace that the very system which should empower us to pursue higher education is what holds us back.