This is a very upsetting story. It concerns the death of an undergraduate student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Natasha Abrahart was in the second year of a physics degree at Bristol University. She sadly took her life in 2018 \u2014 worried about an oral presentation in front of all the tutors & students. The adjustments needed to help Natasha were simple. Although it was easy to make this presentation less stressful, Bristol University\u2019s Physics Department did not do so. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ‘Duty of Care’ that a University owes to a student is not straightforward to define. Academics aren\u2019t qualified to make difficult medical judgements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Abrahart case though is a very simple one. Natasha’s impairment was plain to see. The adjustment needed was straightforward. All of us involved in University teaching are aware of cases where reasonable adjustments are made to assessment under Equalities legislation. For Bristol University not to have applied a simple adjustment in this case was wrong. Sadly, it had tragic consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bristol University should have accepted the blame straight away and apologised immediately to the grieving parents. Instead, they fought the parents in the law courts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bristol University lost the first five day trial in March 2022. The first judgement on the Abrahart case is here<\/a>. It is upsetting to read because of a lack of basic humanity on the part of the University. Natasha was in serious difficulties, it was \u2014 or should have been \u2014 obvious she needed help, and yet no-one did anything to help her. Having lost the court case, the University then quibbled over having to pay for specific parts of the funeral expenses — in particular, for the cost of a headstone and for light refreshments at the reception. <\/p>\n\n\n\n All this is bad enough. But then, Bristol University callously appealed the original decision. This looked like a cynical attempt to bury the Abraharts with legal costs. Of course, private individuals do not have access to the financial resources of a great University. Public money was used to try and browbeat the Abraharts into surrender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n