A Parents’ Guide to the
Disability Service 2012
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Welcome
Dear Parents (or Guardians)
All parents/guardians have concerns when their son or daughter begins a
new life in college. As a parent of a student with a disability, you are more
likely to have questions and anxieties about the support your son or
daughter can expect in college.
The transition to university is a big step for all students, but particularly for
those with additional support requirements. It can be difficult to find out
what needs to be done and the appropriate times to do so. We want to
ensure that every student is adequately supported.
This guide was written to address some of those concerns, to answer
questions, to describe the kind of tasks and roles your son or daughter will
undertake as part of engaging with campus life, and to explain the
difference in services and supports between second level and third level.
Please feel free to contact us if you have further questions or need more
detailed explanations.
Best wishes
Declan Treanor
Director of the College Disability Service
2
Table of Contents
The Student Journey................................................................... 4
Registering with the Disability Service ......................................... 5
Communicating with parents or guardians .................................. 6
Managing College life ................................................................. 7
Code of Practice for Students with Disabilities ............................ 7
Preparing for College life............................................................. 8
Independence and responsibilty.................................................. 8
Assessment of student needs ..................................................... 9
Communicating student needs and supports to College staff .... 10
Supports available to students .................................................. 11
Parents and Guardians Checklist .............................................. 16
Disability Service Contacts........................................................ 19
Other Useful Addresses in College ........................................... 20
This booklet is available in other accessible formats upon request and on
our website at
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/
Keep in touch with what is going on the
Disability Service by follow us on:
3
Guide for Parents and Guardians
The Student Journey
In 2011, 113 applicants with a disability accepted a Trinity place on merit,
having achieved the required points for their course of choice; 77 students
accepted a place under the DARE scheme. The Disability Service had
911 students with a disability registered during 2011/12. The completion
rate of the students who entered in 2007 was 87%. Of the graduates in
2012 with a disability, 72% achieved a first class or upper second class
degree.
The Disability Service Outreach, Transition, Retention and Progression
Plan 2011 – 2014 aims to develop clear and effective support systems at
all stages in the student journey from college entrance to graduation to
employment. The Disability Service works with students at three stages
of their Higher Education journey: Phase 1 Pre-entry - Admission and the
first year experience, Phase 2 - Building and maintaining a college career,
and Phase 3 - Progressing through College to employment.
Each phase of the student journey is aligned to the Strategic Objectives of
Trinity College and to national targets for students with disabilities set by
the Higher Education Authority (HEA).
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/projects/index.php
4
Registering with the Disability Service
Our staff are experienced and highly qualified professionals with
knowledge and expertise in disability, access and equity issues. We work
closely with academic staff, tutors, administrators, and other support
services to ensure College is as accessible as possible to all students.
The best thing you can do is to encourage your son or daughter to make
contact with the Disability Service as soon as possible. It can often be
helpful to discuss any issues or concerns before applying to study at
Trinity College. If that was not possible then he or she should be
encouraged to speak to someone in the Disability Service as near to the
start of the beginning of the college year as possible. We would suggest
that students:
1. Visit Pathways to Trinity www.tcd.ie/pathways-to-trinity a
dedicated transition website which provides guidance about the
process of making course choices and preparing for University,
and also outlines the supports available within College.
2. Contact the Disability Service before the final CAO change of
mind date (1st July) to discuss options.
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/students/index.php
5
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Communicating with parents or guardians
We realise that sometimes families have had to struggle to have the
needs of their child recognised and adequately supported. However,
once they have left school, most students are regarded as being in charge
of their own support. This means that we cannot respond directly to
family or guardians, and can only work with the student.
We are happy to provide general information and guidance, but we are
bound by the Data Protection Act and our Code of Practice to maintain
confidentiality. This means that we cannot discuss your son or daughter’s
progress with you unless we have written permission from them to do so.
Even with the student's permission this will be at the discretion of the
Director of the Disability Service.
For this reason we believe it is extremely important for parents, guardians
and students to engage with Disability Service staff prior to the student
entering college. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, the
Disability Service does not communicate directly with families or
guardians.
6
Managing College life
If you are concerned that coursework, studying or the college environment
is becoming unmanageable, or you are worried that your son or daughter
is seriously unwell, please advise them to contact their Disability Officer.
Other useful contacts are:

Assigned College Tutor

Student Counselling Service

The College Health Centre
Code of Practice for Students with Disabilities
The Code of Practice is intended to provide a model for a high standard of
service to students with disabilities. The College will take reasonable
steps to ensure that it does not place a student with a disability at a
substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled student.
The Code of Practice has two main purposes
-
to outline for students with disabilities their rights and
responsibilities in receiving reasonable accommodations while
studying at Trinity;
-
to define Trinity’s rights and responsibilities to students with
disabilities and the College community.
7
Guide for Parents and Guardians
All students registering with DS will receive a copy of this code of practice
to read and sign. A web version is available on our website: Code of
Practice 2012
Preparing for College life
Preparation for the move to college should begin long before
attending college open days or applying to the CAO. Your son
or daughter should begin preparing for life after secondary
school by understanding their disability and how it may affect
academic performance (self-awareness and selfdetermination), recognise strengths, weaknesses and
successful coping strategies and communicate these to other
adults (self-advocacy). These skills are a vital aspect of the
third level experience, and young adults will need time to
develop, practice and fine-tune their self-advocacy abilities.
Independence and responsibilty
Often first year students are unprepared for the amount of
responsibility that is expected in the college environment.
These skills and abilities can be developed by encouraging
your son or daughter to take responsibility for educational and
personal goals while they are still in secondary school.
8
You can help by encouraging your son or daughter to problemsolve and address the situations independently, while you offer
support and additional help, only if needed.
In college, students are expected to meet deadlines, be
prepared for class and tests, and to make wise use of their
time. Good time management, organizational, and study skills
will be important to the preparation for college learning.
Assessment of student needs
Once an offer has been accepted, a Disability Officer will
contact each student with a needs assessment appointment.
This is an opportunity to discuss support requirements and
concerns. It is absolutely vital that each student attends an
appointment before the academic year begins. It has been our
experience over the last decade that students who engage
with the service prior to the start of the academic year, find the
transition to university easier.
A detailed needs-assessment will be carried out by a Disability
Officer, who will discuss previous educational support during
secondary school, and the type of supports that might be
required in third level. The level of support required will differ
between students, and even students with similar disabilities,
as each student brings with them their own experience.
9
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Communicating student needs and supports to
College staff
The needs assessment report is called the Learning
Educational Needs Summary (LENS). This report outlines the
supports required - for example, it will tell academics about
additional exam supports.
If necessary, a meeting will then be organised between the
student, their College Tutor and/or department and their
Disability Officer to discuss the LENS.
The LENS is then sent to students to confirm their agreement
with the arrangements. Unless students confirm acceptance
of this document in a timely fashion, supports are not activated
and this information is not forwarded to academic staff. In our
experience the most frequent reason for delayed or absence
of supports and/or accommodations is a failure on the part of
the student to respond to communications from the Disability
Service.
10
Supports available to students
Students with a disability or specific learning difficulty
(including dyslexia) may require support whilst studying at
Trinity. This can take various forms depending on individual
requirements.
Examples include:
•
Exam Accommodations
•
Access to Assistive Technology
•
Extended Borrowing in the Library
•
Specialist tuition for students with dyslexia
•
Tuition for students with disabilities
•
Academic/ Library assistant
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/T-Services/index.php
11
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Assistive Technology
Assistive Technology is essentially support in having a
computer or other technology equipment assist one to work
effectively in areas that cause some difficulty. Once registered
with the service for assistive technology support a number of
resources are available:
-
A college-wide software package called Texthelp Read
& Write is available in all college public computer
rooms. This software has a range of tools and
techniques to ensure essays or projects are planned &
completed. For information on this software see:
http://www.texthelp.com/page.asp?pg_id=1261
-
Full access to use of the Assistive technology resource
rooms (ATIC areas) in the Libraries. These areas have
computers, scanners, printing facilities, and many
different software packages, including:
12

Software that allows ideas, projects and essays
to be planned visually and dictionaries,
thesaurus, word prediction and homophone
support.

Software that allows documents to be scanned
and read aloud by a computer.
-
Access to 1:1 training & advice from the Assistive
Technology officer Andrew Costello – located in the
ATIC area of the BLU complex.
-
Access to support on a range of free-to-use software
from the Disability Service website at:
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/T-Services/AT/index.php
-
we would highly recommend that the My Study Bar
from the free software area of this site is downloaded.
13
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Unilink Occupational Therapy Service
Trinity College is unique in that we offer a confidential
occupational therapy service for students who may be
experiencing mental health difficulties, physical, sensory or
chronic health disabilities. Unilink is run by the Discipline of
Occupational Therapy in collaboration with the College
Disability Service. All staff members in the service are
qualified occupational therapists and are bound by the Code of
Practice of the Association of Occupational Therapists of
Ireland.
The aim of the Unilink Service is to enable the student, to
develop practical skills and strategies to help them in their role
as a student both academically and socially.
Unilink is a student-centered service, this means that the
sessions are guided by what the student needs and wants to
do. Additionally it is up to the student whether they wish to
avail of the service or not. Unilink is available on a one-to-one
basis throughout the students’ college career.
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/services/Unilink/index.php
14
Academic and study skills support
DS provides an online study skills resource to all students:
Skills4Study Campus. This is an online programme providing
e-learning modules and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week. Instructions for accessing this programme can be
downloaded from
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/docs/General%20Word%20docs/Ho
w-to-access-Skills4Study-Campus.doc
Academic support is also available as leaflets, podcasts and in
mp3 format from
http://www.tcd.ie/disability/services/AST/index.php and can
also be downloaded from TCD iTunes or YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/DSServiceTCD#p/u and
15
Guide for Parents and Guardians
One-to-one Academic Support is available to students with
significant needs registered with the Service. Every reasonable
effort will be made to support students but this service is
subject to the availability of tutors in specialist areas.
Academic support is not an editing, proofreading or 'quick fix'
solution, but aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of
in writing and improving skills.
Additionally, learning support is available for students with
specific learning difficulties through the College Counselling
Service. The learning support team offers one-to-one
appointments and workshops that cover study and
organisational strategies, academic writing skills, managing
examinations, presentation skills, and other topics related to
academic study. Further information is available at:
http://www.tcd.ie/Student_Counselling/studentlearning/undergraduate/
Parents and Guardians Checklist

The assessment of needs process must be initiated by
the student themselves. Students will receive an
16
invitation to meet their Disability Officer and they
should make sure they attend this appointment.

As a parent or guardian you may feel quite strongly that
you want to advocate on behalf of your son or daughter
within the needs assessment process. The Code of
Practice and the Data Protection Act means that
Disability Service staff are not able to discuss your son
or daughter’s individual needs with anyone, including
parents or guardians, without written consent from the
student.

Specific supports that the Disability Service provides
require that the student takes responsibility for
following procedures, and attending meetings and
appointments. If these procedures are not followed,
your son or daughter could risk losing these supports.

If your son or daughter experiences any difficulties in
college or if the nature of his/ her disability changes,
they should contact the Disability Services immediately.
If we do not hear from your son or daughter, we
assume that all is well.

As young adults, it is the responsibility of the student to
confirm or amend their college supports including
17
Guide for Parents and Guardians
examination accommodations. Accommodations are
not put in place until requested by the student.
Useful information / Weblinks
TCD Orientation website for new students
http://www.tcd.ie/orientation/
Course information packs
http://www.tcd.ie/orientation/pre-arrival/packs/
Fresher’s Week
http://www.tcd.ie/orientation/freshers-week/
Student life in TCD
http://www.tcdlife.ie/
Student’s Union
http://www.tcdsu.org/
Senior Tutor’s Office
http://www.tcd.ie/Senior_Tutor/
18
Disability Service Contacts
Declan Treanor
Declan Reilly
Disability Service Director
Disability Officer across all
Schools
E-mail: dtreanor@tcd.ie
Tel: (01) 896 3475
E-mail: reillyde@tcd.ie
Tel: (01) 896 3776
Alison Doyle
Jennifer Maxwell
Disability Officer across all
Schools
ESW Administrator
E-mail: alison.doyle@tcd.ie
E-mail: eswadmin@tcd.ie
Tel: (01) 896 3971
Tel: (01) 896 3014
Andrew Costello
Carol Barry
Assistive Technology Officer
Executive Officer
Email: atic@tcd.ie
E-mail: disab@tcd.ie
Tel: (01) 896 2903
Tel: (01) 896 3111
Claire Gleeson
Kieran Lewis
UNILINK Occupational
Therapist
UNILINK Occupational
Therapist
E-mail: unilink1@tcd.ie
E-mail: unilink1@tcd.ie
Tel: 085 7585835
Tel: 087 274 3879
19
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Lynn O’Toole
UNILINK Occupational
Therapist
Tel: 086 3209966
Other Useful Addresses in College
Admissions Office
Address:
Regent House, Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 4444
Fax:
00353 1 872 2853
E-mail:
Web:
admissns@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/Admissions
Fees Office
Address:
5 College Green, Floor 3,
Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 1852
Fax:
00353 1 896 2576
Web:
www.tcd.ie/Treasurers_Office/fees/
20
Student Health Centre
Address:
House 47, Trinity College, Dublin 2
Telephone:
00353 1 896 1556
Web:
www.tcd.ie/College_Health/
Accommodation Office
Address:
West Chapel, Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 1177
Fax:
00353 1 671 1267
E-mail:
Web:
reservations@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/accommodation/
Senior Tutor’s Office
Address:
House 27, Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 2551
Fax:
00353 1 672 5089
E-mail:
Web:
senior.tutor@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/Senior_Tutor/
Student Counselling Service
Address:
Third Floor,
7-9 South Leinster Street, Dublin 2
Telephone:
00353 1 896 1407
Fax:
00353 1 608 3464
Web:
www.tcd.ie/Student_Counselling
21
Guide for Parents and Guardians
Examinations Office
Address:
West Theatre, Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 2345 / 3710
Fax:
00353 1 896 9260
E-mail:
Web:
exams@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/Senior_Lecturer/teo/
Student Union & Education Officer for Student with
Disabilities
Address:
House 6, Trinity College Dublin
Telephone:
00353 1 896 6545
Fax:
00353 1 6777957
E-mail:
Web:
osd@tcdsu.org
http://www.tcdsu.tcdlife.ie
Careers Advisory Service
Address:
7-9 South Leinster Street, Dublin 2
Telephone:
00353 1 896 1721/1705
Fax:
00353 1 6793295
E-mail:
Web:
careers@tcd.ie
www.tcd.ie/Careers
22