The Disability Campaign

NDSS Event for Disability History Month

Join NDSS for an informal (workshop/training session) to learn more about tics and Tourettes with Tourettes Action. These sessions aim to provide an overview of what Tourette syndrome is, myth bust common misconceptions, explore how you can support people living with the condition and is followed by a Q&A.

Location to be confirmed.

Congratulations to everyone who received their A’level results today. You should be very proud of yourselves. We are certainly very proud of you !

We will be doing shoutouts for society’s who support Disabled and Neurodivergent people at Exeter so that you know that you are not alone and that there are communities and support networks waiting for you.

The lead up to Freshers is very exiting, but we also know it can be daunting. To help you through this we will be posting advice for freshers, essentials to pack, and areas on campus and in Exeter that will make you feel more comfortable when u arrive.

If you have any questions or want advice please dm the page we will be happy to help you .

We hope you have an incredible evening celebrating, it’s so well deserved !!

EXETER DISABILITY CAMPAIGN STATEMENT:

This needs to be passed around the Uni as it is really important! Pls interact with this post and share it on your stories.

The Channel 4 documentary ‘Britain’s Tourette’s Mystery’ has spread so much inaccurate information about Tourette’s that people are loosing friends, Jobs and Families over it. If you say you do not want to go out with someone because they have Tics and you are worried about catching them, You are ABELIST!

You cannot ‘catch’ Tourette’s, you cannot get it off of TikTok, Tourette’s, Tics, Tic Disorder’s, Anxiety Tics, FND Tics, are all Valid but they are not the same thing.

Keep an eye on this Instagram for more awareness about Tourettes and Tics.

It is so important that society’s start to make more inclusive events, that are easily accesible to all.

This does not mean providing a token event once and a while, this means making sure throughout the year that everyone has access to the society and that you’re protecting the welfare of all students.

Not all events are going to be fully accesible, but you have to go to all the lengths to make it accesible first. Then please start putting disclosures when advertising your event on social media so that your members are safe and won’t get disappointed at the door. For instance; “the event is wheelchair accesible on the ground floor. There is a disabled toilet there as well. The upper floors are not accesible. There will be strobe lights”




♿️

This is a really important post about Wheelchair Etiquette. Pls take your time to read it all.

Too many times have there been cases at Exeter of individuals moving wheelchair users without consent and infantilising them.
There is lack of access on all 3 campuses; most of the wheelchair entrances, of the few buildings which have them, are around the back by the bins with little signposting. There is no accessible tour available on ELE. There are also very few electric doors and most lifts are not strong enough to support power wheelchairs despite timetabling not taking this into account.

This has got to change. Wheelchair users have the same rights as able bodied individuals to education. Do not treat wheelchair users as any different from able bodied individuals.

Let us work together to improve Exeter’s accessibility!!

Help the 2022 Exeter IGEM Team tackle ableism in science !

Slide 1: Goals
Slide 2: Explaining IGEM

If you are/were a disabled student or professional in STEM and interested in helping with any of the goals, please contact the Exeter IGEM team by DMing .igem2022
or email them at [email protected].

Additionally, if you are not in STEM but are interested in helping with the third goal, please contact the team as well.

Image description for the first image: Text based image. Background is ombre blue with a hexagon web overlayed. A white text box with black text fills the image. Text reads: Disability and STEM. Help the 2022 Exeter IGEM Team tackle ableism in science. Goals: Identify specific barriers faced by disabled people in STEM and how ableism impacts them within their field. Develop modified common laboratory tools that would be more accessible for people with hand or motor coordination disabilities. Discuss the impact of synthetic biology on the development of cures, along with discussing the ethics and philosophy surrounding the development and use of cures.

Image description for the second image: Text based image. Background is ombre blue with a hexagon web overlayed. A white text box with black text fills the image. Text reads: WHat is IGEM? IGEM stands for the International Genetically Engineered Machine Competition. In IGEM, university teams from all over the world go head to head to develop a synthetic biology approach to solve a real world problem. However, teams do not only consider the science side of the solution, but the human practices side as well, and improving inclusion and accessibility in STEM is paramount. This year, Team Exeter is developing a synthetic spider silk-graphene composite that is grown up in E. coli. This composite is biocompatible and should have many potential uses in the healthcare, manufacturing, and technology industries.

Accessibility and Inclusion in Music and Theatre at Exeter needs to improve so it doesn’t discriminate or remain exclusive.
Disabled people enjoy the arts just as much as able bodied individuals, don’t deny anyone the chance to create or watch the arts. We have the right to be included and treated as equals. Anyone can act, direct, sing, conduct, play an instrument and work backstage as long as theatre and music adapt to their disabilities and skill set.
This post provides checklists and explanations on Accessible Performances, Rehearsals, Auditions and the importance of Disability Advisors. Let’s work together to ensure everyone has access to the Arts !











We are tagging all the music and theatre groups of exeter to ensure every society reads this post. As we can only tag 20 in the image the rest are tagged here.

July is Disability Pride month. Many people will not be aware of this as Disabilities are very rarely commercialised. It is so important that we raise our voices and amplify others to ensure wider inclusion accesibility and diversity. Let’s help ourselves and others accept and have pride in our disabilities. We deserve to be heard.

[post re-shared from ]

What skills does having a disability give you? is TODAY! It is something to celebrate, persevering with life despite having a disability that adds extra barriers is something to be proud of. You develop many extra skills managing a disability compared to your non disabled peers, for example, you might be extremely efficient in time management due to your medical requirements, or you might be brilliant at prioritising! 🎉 image description: “International day of person with disabilities, December 3rd” writing on a blue background with a person in a wheelchair icon that has an arty pattern on it instead of the usual black lines.

In collaboration with the Guild’s Disability History Month Events we are excited to play a part in hosting Rinkoo Barpaga on Monday! Rinkoo is a stand up comedian, actor, film maker and street photographer. He will be speaking about the production of his documentary of 'Double Discrimination' and his life experiences in the Deaf community. Get your free ticket now with the FIXR link on our linktree and the Zoom link will be shared with you after purchase!

This year’s UKDHM focuses on two enduring
stereotypes that make disabled people’s lives more difficult and act as a barrier to our inclusion.
People with Hidden Impairments are often not thought to be disabled people. In the media and popular culture one has to ‘see’ our impairment. ‘What’s wrong’ with the person who identifies as disabled? Yet the majority of disabled people have hidden impairments and so it is often assumed we are liars when we try to exercise our rights.
Disabled people are not seen as ‘sexy’. We are often viewed as perpetual children, as a threat to the gene-pool and asexual. Based on these falsehoods the shocking history of our treatment has denied our right to family life, children, relationships and sexuality. Yet disabled people are as varied as everyone else, with no less capacity and need for expressing emotions, our sexuality & having relationships. This text has been replicated from Broadsheet for UKDHM 2021, we do not own the text or graphic. We are sharing for informational and awareness purposes! Source: © UK Disability History Month 2021

Do you have Autism? Would you like the opportunity to share your experiences with the BBC to help people who are not neurodiverse gain a better understanding of autism? Then this might be for you! High contrast version of image on 2nd slide. Text: BBC AUTISM DOCUMENTARY WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU! BBC studios is producing a new 2-part documentary for BBC 2. ‘Inside the autistic mind’ will explore the lives of people who are autistic. Are you interested in sharing your lived experience of autism? Would you like the non autistic people in your life to understand your world better? Would you be interested in collaborating with our team of animators and graphic designers to help communicate your experiences? This series aims to improve understanding of the challenges of being autistic as well as highlighting the benefits. It is being produced by a diverse team that includes both autistic and non autistic people. If you would like to talk to us, please tell us more about yourself in an email to [email protected] … if you’d rather send us a video or a voice note, that’s fine too. We look forward to hearing from you. ALT TEXT: dotted turquoise border around text. In the same colour is the BBC 2 logo and in black is the BBC studios Documentary unit logo. The title is white writing on a turquoise background: “BBC AUTISM DOCUMENTARY WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU!”

Today marks the start of UK disability history month!

This years joint themes are:
- Disability S*x and Relationships
- Disability and Hidden Impairment

We look forward to sharing posts throughout the month to raise awareness of these topics.

There is a launch event being held tonight at 7-9pm, the link to register for this is in our bio.

PARA FOOTBALL TASTER SESSION!! We congratulate EUAFC and EULFC in running the first ON CAMPUS sports club inclusive disability taster session. The taster session is on November 4th at 2pm! Please come along, we are so excited about this.
Image: “para football taster session 4th November 2021 2pm-3pm” on a green background and people celebrating. Image 2: “EULFC and EUAFC are working with Exeter city community trust to increase para football opportunities for all students, inclusive to any students with a disability. This starts with a taster session on 4th November 2021, 2-3pm in the streatham indoor sports hall. Para football is a game for all, beginners are welcome. Any questions, message or . Get your FIXR ticket now, link in bio.”

⭐️Reminder⭐️

Come to our freshers week event tomorrow at 2pm to meet the team and find out about what we do and how to get involved.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

See the event on our page.

Last of all is Keron sharing what he wishes he’d done 💙

Next up Holly shares her experience 💙

Next up is Pagan sharing what she wishes she’d known as a fresher 💙

On a slightly different note, Maisie shares what she wishes she’d known 💚

Next up is Scarlett 💙

To kick off freshers week, some of our team has decided to share what they wish they’d known as a fresher.

First up is Skye 💚

Stay on the lookout for posts throughout the day!

👀This happens a lot on campus...

Language can be very harmful. Joking about disabilities is not acceptable, and something a lot of students overlook - see above examples.

Using disabilities as an insult or to describe someone negatively is wrong.

This promotes discrimination and negative association of people with disabilities - also known as a form of ableism.

If you hear other students, friends, staff or notice yourself using harmful language correct it - call it out.

If you’re an Exeter student and would like to contact our campaign about harmful language you can always message us here on Instagram or our Facebook. 💙

Adjustments for both coursework and exams are available for application to ensure all students have equal opportunity at achieving their best grades at university.

Adjustments are available to students with disabilities - the adjustment can change depending on your individual needs.

It’s important to check adjustment application deadlines as they are often a month+ in advance of exams to give your department time to create an alternative assessment for you if needed.

If you have any difficulty with adjustments contact your module convenor, personal tutor, access at Exeter, and you can always reach out to us at the disability campaign.

You deserve the same opportunities as every student to do your best in coursework and exams! 💙

We need to talk about these.

Please share this to raise awareness + comment other accessibility issues you notice on campus below.

we are looking forward to seeing greater support for these starting next academic year so that all disabled students have equal access to campus and university opportunities. This post only covers a few of the barriers we’ve shared with you that still exist at Exeter university...

People with disabilities that create fatigue are not just tired.

They can’t just go to sleep for a few hours and leave the fatigue behind...

People with chronic fatigue syndrome suffer with a huge range of symptoms such as memory loss, acute pain, chronic migraines, extreme fatigue, digestive problems and sometimes complete loss of mobility.

This can look like difficulty concentrating, dizziness, pain during lectures.

This can look like not being able to climb stairs on campus due to fatigue and body pain but ALSO not being able to walk the longer route round easily to find a lift due to the fatigue and pain.

For people with chronic fatigue a lift or a disabled parking space isn’t necessarily accessible for them as a route to a lecture...

If they have to walk far from the parking space to their classroom, or they have to walk to the other side of a building to get the lift instead of stairs how does this help support their fatigue + acute body pain?

If you have to arrive early to your classes, park far away and get to your lecture exhausted and in pain before you even start learning - do you have equal opportunities to others in your lecture?

Next time you’re on campus we’d like you to look out for disabled parking spaces and lifts - and to think about how many there are, and how easy it would be to walk from them to your classes if you had fatigue.

The more aware we are, the more we can understand and support each other’s needs 💙

Image caption: half yellow half purple graphic with caption text in black.

Ready to become a better ally to disabled students?

Let’s cut right to the chase:

1. Listen

Disabled people know their disability best. Disabled people have the right to correct your speech if you’re using offensive language or ignoring an obstacle they’re dealing with. If you don’t have the same disability and you havnt been in their shoes show support, show empathy, and listen. DO NOT SAY YOU UNDERSTAND IF YOU DONT. It’s ok not to know how to help someone - you can always ask them how, and show you’ll listen and learn.

2. Increase your individual accessibility

Create with accessibility in mind - add alt text, captions and transcripts to your social media and events content. Think about spaces you’re meeting friends, correct harmful language around disability you witness and create safe spaces for new university friends to share their disability or challenges with you they’re facing on campus.

3. Remember that not all disabilities are visible.

Don’t make assumptions or accusations. It came to light recently via Exefess ( the university confessions fb page) that some students had harassed another student with an invisible disability for using the disabled toilet on campus. This is inconsiderate, and NOT allyship even if it came from a place of wanting to ensure the toilet was available to students with disabilities. Don’t forget not all disabilities are visible, making flash judgements without consideration can seriously harm others and isolate them.💙

(If you’re ever unsure how you can help increase accessibility in a student group you can always reach out to us for advice)

If you’d like to get involved in our campaign next academic year you can always message us on Instagram here!

Image caption: yellow background with purple sticker in centre reading “how to be an ally to the disabled community”. In the top left hand corner there is a picture of a woman with a prosthetic arm and colourful hair, in the bottom right hand corner there is an image of a woman at a table with her service dog.

Let’s break down another myth...

Dyscalculia is not just “maths dyslexia”

It is an entirely separate condition affection someone’s ability to manipulate numbers, problem solve, probability and reasoning, comprehend time frames, and perform calculations.

Dyscalculia needs different support from dyslexia and presents differently in different people.

Dyscalculia does not affect a persons intelligence - just how their brain completes calculation tasks with numbers.💙

Image caption: blue and purple half and half graphic with black writing reading “myth, “truth” and the above information from the caption on dyscalculia

Noticed all of these?

share this to spread awareness 💙

Image caption 1: purple graphic reading “online accessibility issues you probably don’t notice, a thread” in blue writing, with picture of woman sat on grass with laptop next to text.

Continued in comments.

To all our disabled student community members - we are always here if you have questions about your rights to access support at the university of Exeter 💙

Image caption: half yellow half purple graphic with black text reading “Myth: in order to have an accessible room you have to pay more money...Truth: as of 2016 the university is forbidden from passing on the extra cost of accessible room to any student who requires one, no matter what their disability is.

Wheelchair etiquette isn't often talked about - especially not at university so let's talk about it:⁠
⁠
Please read ALL of the below examples before deciding none of them apply to you or people you know... some of them might seem obvious to you but ...(we've heard some of these on campus)😬⁠
⁠
DON'T SAY THINGS LIKE 'I wish I had one of those when I get tired' - insensitive and inappropriate.⁠
⁠
DO NOT lean on someones' wheelchair, rest your feet, items ANYTHING on it without permission. This is disrespectful.⁠
⁠
DON'T kick (yes seriously seen this one) buttons for automatic doors on campus - this means someone in a wheelchair then has to touch the button with dirt on to open the door AND you could break an accessible exit. It's just plain rude.⁠
⁠
ASK FIRST before pushing someone's wheelchair and never move one without permission, this can lead to serious harm and is disrespectful.⁠
⁠
DON'T step in front of a wheelchair user to stop them. ⁠
⁠
If you'd like to add anything to the list let us know in the comments!💙⁠
⁠
Image Caption - Purple background graphic with image of man in wheelchair wearing glasses, blue shirt and brown trousers, next to ramp. Text on graphic reads 'Wheelchair Etiquette'.⁠
⁠

Chronic pain is NOT like other types of pain.⁠
⁠
Chronic pain is often constant, but always returning and can impair some brain functions such as concentration and memory.⁠
⁠
If you have not experience chronic pain you will not be able to relate to it - reducing the importance of it or comparing non chronic pain experiences when talking to someone with chronic pain is insensitive and damaging to their wellbeing. ⁠
⁠
Quite simply - don't do it.⁠
⁠
Some more information on Chronic Pain:⁠
⁠
Chronic pain is characterized as persistent pain that lasts longer than three months EVEN WITH TREATMENT OR MEDICATION.⁠
⁠
Chronic pain can impair your working and long-term memory as well as your concentration. ⁠
⁠
Chronic pain patients are 4x MORE LIKELY to have depression or anxiety than people who are pain-free.⁠
⁠
Chronic pain affects people in different ways but usually affects quality of life and the ability to complete everyday tasks.⁠
⁠
People with chronic pain have likely dealt with it for a LONG TIME - this doesn't make the pain any less difficult to manage - and just because someone doesn't 'look' in pain to you that doesn't mean they are not.⁠
⁠
It's important to respect and support the boundaries set by those around you with chronic pain - they may not be able to sit on a certain chair, or need to sit down more often, or struggle to type for long periods of time or all of these or none.⁠
⁠
You don't have to relate or understand to offer Chronic pain patients empathy, because it sucks.💙⁠
⁠
⁠Image Caption: light blue graphic with image of wooden toy person holding one hand on head and one hand on stomach. Darker blue writing around the image of the toy reads: chronic pain is the leading cause of disability globally.
⁠

If you're a student, society committee member, lecturer, staff , aspiring Exeter student without a disability- how many times do you notice barriers to accessibility during your week.⁠
⁠
How many did you notice today?⁠
⁠
There are so many accessibility barriers you may take for granted restricting the learning and social lives of disabled students on campus... ⁠
⁠
How many stairs do you take to get to class?⁠
⁠
Do your lectures have live subtitles?⁠
⁠
How much further from class is the lift and would that mean you have to get up earlier and get to campus earlier?⁠
⁠
Do people around you forget that disabilities can be invisble?⁠
⁠
Do people around you mock disabilities or use them in jokes?⁠
⁠
Does your society have socials often in inaccessible areas like the top floor of firehouse pizzerria ?⁠
⁠
Do your lecturers provide transcripts quickly and are they accurate or autogenerated and unclear?⁠
⁠
Every student has the right to the same quality of education and the same social opportunities at university - but right now the university and a lot of societies (though we have some amazing societies supporting our campaign and doing great new things)don't acknoledge and make adjustments for these barriers.⁠
⁠
If you are ignoring accessibility barriers you know exist on campus or in your society - this is part of the problem.⁠
⁠
We'd love to know accessibility barriers you've noticed on campus (you can comment below to DM us) to feed back to the university.⁠
⁠
IF YOU EXPERIENCE/ WITNESS ACCESSIBILITY BARRIERS BEING IGNORED OR REINFORCED BY U OF E STAFF PLEASE CALL THEM OUT DIRECTLY AND LET US KNOW.💙⁠
⁠

There are many barriers to deaf people on campus - lack of transcripts after lectures, or transcripts that are auto generated and not checked. No captions for live classes, both online and in person.

Societies also don’t tend to offer transcripts or captions at their events (especially having had the past years events largely online).

These are serious accessibility barriers not being acknowledged on campus - and during exam season when revision using past lectures is necessary for study.

If your lecturers aren’t providing transcripts or captions for recordings of work contact your module convenor to request further support (you can also message us here on Instagram).

All students deserve equal access to education and equal opportunities in exams - not offering transcripts( or unclear automatic ones) and not offering captions is not equal access.

If you are a society please remember to add captions to your social media videos promoting student events and to recordings of past events on opportunities such as internships to support our deaf student community. We are always here to support societies on ways to improve accessibility (just send us a DM).

Above all - listen to deaf people and research when you don’t understand something - they know their experience best.

Deaf awareness week is about coming together, and about amplifying the voices of the deaf community.

So here are some amazing deaf creators to follow - and we would love for you to tag more deaf creators you follow in the comments 💙







Image Caption: Purple background with black text in blue bubble reading “deaf awareness week”. 2 cartoon drawings of a man with blue shirt, blonde hair signing and a woman in a blue hijab and a yellow shirt signing.

*Share this post to spread awareness*

You can’t tell how much pain someone is in just by looking at them.

Disabilities can be visible and they can be invisible.

You can have chronic pain (the leading cause of disability worldwide) and no one at university know, not ‘look in pain’ despite still experiencing high levels of ongoing pain with both treatments and medication.

People don’t have to show their disability in a way you understand or have seen before.

Just because you can’t see a disability doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.

Just because you can’t see someone’s pain doesn’t mean it’s not there. 💙

Let’s lead with empathy.

*share this to spread awareness*

Image Description: yellow background with tear drop outline behind purple text reading: you can’t tell how much pain someone is in just by looking at them.