Teesside University shortlisted for national award over disabled student support

Teesside University has been shortlisted for a national higher education award after changing the way disabled students organise and receive support during their studies.

The Middlesbrough university is a finalist in the Outstanding Support for Students category at the 2026 Times Higher Education Awards. The nomination centres on a new online Student Support Plan system developed to make support easier to arrange and more consistent across the institution.

Turning support plans into a shared system

The project was led by Teesside University’s Disability Support Team with input from departments and academic schools. Its aim is to make sure agreed adjustments and support can be communicated clearly, reducing the risk that students have to repeatedly explain what they need as they move between different parts of university life.

That may sound like an administrative change, but good systems can make a substantial difference to whether accessibility works in practice. A reasonable adjustment that exists only in one person’s inbox is fragile. A support plan that can be accessed and acted on consistently is much more likely to survive changes of module, lecturer or timetable.

Teesside says the new system has improved the experience and outcomes of disabled students by helping the right support reach people at the right time. The award shortlist recognises the work as a university-wide collaboration rather than a project sitting solely within one specialist team.

National recognition for a practical change

The Times Higher Education Awards are one of the sector’s major annual awards programmes. Winners will be announced on Thursday 26 November, so the shortlist is recognition rather than a result at this stage.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Mark Simpson said the nomination reflected the work of colleagues across the university and described support for students as a central priority. Teesside is also the current Times Higher Education University of the Year 2025, giving the new nomination some wider context without changing what is being judged this time.

The strongest part of the story is not the trophy cabinet. It is the focus on the plumbing of inclusion: the systems that determine whether a student gets the support already agreed for them without unnecessary repetition, delay or confusion.

For disabled students, small administrative barriers can pile up quickly. Teesside’s shortlist suggests that work to remove some of those barriers is being noticed nationally. The final result will come in November, but the project itself is already in use on campus.