Helpful, friendly, supportive, and understanding staff, who provided ideas and suggestions to me that I didn't know were possible.
Masters student, Annual Student Survey 2014
The Accessibility and Disability Resource Centre does valuable work helping disabled students get the support they need to pursue a full academic life while in Cambridge.
This support is essential to give disabled students the chance to fulfil their potential and those who take up support are more likely to achieve an appropriate degree result than their disabled peers who don't access support.
Often, additional funds are needed to support those students beyond that available through statutory support, or to cover shortfalls or gaps in provision. You can make a general donation to the ADRC through the University of Cambridge online giving portal.
If you would like more information, or would like to consider a larger donation, please contact Lara Gisborne, Operations Manager.
If you would like to give to a specific area of our work, there are three main funds:
The Disabled Students' Bursary Fund
Students can apply to this fund for:
- help to cover additional expenses that arise from academic work such as field trips and conference attendance
- funding to cover short-term daily needs while waiting for statuory funding to be released, which can take up to 6 months
The ADRC can respond quickly to these needs with the Trustees of the fund, ensuring a flexible response that takes account of the short university terms. A relatively small amount of money can make a big difference to a student facing practical difficulties during their university career. Without this fund, some students would simply not study at Cambridge.
Give to this fund online
International Disabled Students Fund / Snehal Sidhu-Patrick Fund
These funds support the academic-related disability support needs of international students where the needs are not met by statutory funds. This includes specialist equipment, non-medical help, and extra travel costs associated with having a disability. The ADRC can award the fund quickly, ensuring a flexible response that takes account of the short university terms. Awards are given according to need up to a maximum amount.
Give to this fund online
Loan Pool
The Loan Pool is a library of ergonomic and specialist equipment that students and staff can borrow for a period of time.
Our biggest hurdles are being able to meet the demands for the most popular items, thus preventing students from waiting weeks or months for an item they need right away and maintaining the items we have.
Give online