BACK TO CONTENTS UNITE STUDENTS | MEETING THE NEEDS OF NEURODIVERGENT STUDENTS FOCUS GROUP FINDINGS 12 Students spoke at length about sensory issues and how this had affected their accommodation experience, wellbeing and ability to use the space. Noise was a key theme but other sensory issues such as sensitivity to light, texture or discomfort were also mentioned. While noise is a common issue for all students in shared accommodation, for neurodivergent students it can be much more than an inconvenience. Something I struggle with a lot is sensory overload. If there’s too much going on, then I can go completely haywire. Students talked about a high level of sensitivity to noise that went far beyond the usual disruption from noisy flatmates. Every single day I hear the thudding of the people above and it’s really loud... it’s very distressing. They expressed a desire for ‘a quiet corner’ of their accommodation building. Even designated quiet flats could be a problem if there were non-quiet flats next door, above or below. Problematic noise could also arise from external sources such as traffic, or from internal fittings such as lights or heating. I refuse to turn my heating on because when I do I hear the pipe in my room. Oh my gosh, it’s so loud! I can’t stand being in the room with heating on. Noisy fittings caused concern for students who were affected, and they worried that their concerns wouldn’t be taken seriously. [I think] the lights in my room are really, really noisy. If I log that as a fixing request... [maintenance] won’t know what I want... At the moment I don’t feel able to report it because I think it would just be like, they’ll just laugh at me. Students also spoke about the impact of poor communication about how maintenance issues would be resolved, and staff coming to carry out maintenance when they weren’t expected. They wanted clearer scheduling and better information about when maintenance issues would be resolved. Fire alarms could be a source of stress and anxiety. While understanding and acknowledging the need for fire alarm tests for safety reasons, students wondered if there was anything that could be done to accommodate their needs, such as sharing testing schedules in advance and being given a warning about fire drills. They do, after every holiday, a fire test and it’s always at seven o’clock in the morning - but you never know what day it’s going to be. For the first couple of weeks a term, I always go to bed really anxious... maybe for autistic students, if it could be communicated? LIVING IN STUDENT ACCOMMODATION