FAQs

No, the invoice is sent to your funding body. The funds to pay for the assessment are taken from the general allowance of your Disabled Student Allowance (DSA). RACEL charges £660 including VAT.       

This session is to determine what help you require to study effectively, rather than to investigate the nature of your disability.

No, we’re simply finding out what support you need. It is a more relaxed environment than you may have experienced with previous medical assessments.

Our auditing body sets Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for various parts of the assessment process. Accredited centres are obliged to offer an appointment within 15 working days. Even during the busiest periods, RACEL has 100% compliance with this KPI. Check the current ‘waiting time’ on the Making a booking page of our website. It’s usually within a couple of days and we can sometimes even offer appointments on the same day!

You will need to provide us with a copy of your medical evidence and/or your Diagnostic Report and a copy of the letter authorising your assessment from your funding body, at least 24 hours before your assessment.

A Pre-assessment Form will be  emailed to you along with your booking confirmation. You will need to complete this form and return it to the Access Centre at least 24 hours before your assessment.

The Needs Assessment appointment varies in duration and is dependent on the complexity of your needs. The appointment may take up to two hours.  We therefore ask that you put two hours aside exclusively for the Needs Assessment appointment.

If you believe you will struggle to make your appointment due to illness or for any other reasons, please let us know preferably a few days before the appointment, so that way we may be able to offer someone else your appointment slot. If you fail to notify us that you will not be able to attend or do so at short notice (within 48 hours), then there may be a delay until another appointment can be scheduled and a small charge will be requested from your DSA funds.

Our auditing body sets Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for various parts of the assessment process. Accredited centres are obliged to provide you with a copy of your Needs Assessment report within 10 working days of the date of your assessment.

Your Needs Assessment report is an account of the discussion between yourself and your assessor. The recommendations that stem from this are a combination of this discussion, the assessors knowledge and experience, plus the guidelines within which these recommendations can be made and the Medical evidence you submitted with your application.

Your Funding Body is the final arbiter of the DSA fund and can change or reject any recommendation made by your assessor. Your assessor will however be happy to appeal any recommendations that have been refused in the event that this situation occurs.

In the first instance you should discuss any points you're unhappy about with your assessor. If you and your assessor fail to agree, you may then take this up with the Centre Manager or alternatively speak with your funding body. You may find it helpful to know that our centre is staffed by independent professionals and is a member of the Independent Assessment Centres (IAC), as well as being formerly accredited by our auditing body DSA-QAG.

Yes, but you need a valid case for requesting the support (i.e. they should be necessary to alleviate difficulties caused by your disability/Specific Learning Difference in relation to your studies). Contact us and formally request the support you feel you need (we may then require further evidence to be supplied by yourself).

No, since January 2013 any equipment purchased prior to your Funding Body’s approval of which support you can receive through the DSA, will not be refunded by your funding body. If this is an option you would like to explore, please discuss the steps you need to take with your funding body once you have received your agreement letter and before ordering your equipment or putting your support in place.

No, it’s yours to keep.