6.3 St Luke's Welfare Teams

At St Luke’s, the campus where Health and Care Professions students are based, we have welfare teams to support you throughout your time with us. The welfare teams can help with all sorts of concerns that you might have, including general health issues, anxiety, homesickness, disability, debt and much more. Our Welfare Advisors can meet with you to discuss any immediate concerns, and will be able to signpost you to appropriate services for ongoing or further support. With your permission, they can also liaise with others on your behalf to help resolve certain issues.

The welfare team can also be a point of contact if you have concerns about a fellow student, and feel unable to speak to them yourself.

You can contact our St Luke’s Welfare Team directly at welfare.stlukes@exeter.ac.uk, or if you’re on campus ask at the St Luke’s Info Point to speak to a Welfare Advisor.

If you are worried about anything, please tell us. No concern is too small, and we are here to help. It is normal for most students to go through periods of feeling overwhelmed or unhappy at some point, and although you may feel that you can cope alone it always helps to talk to somebody. We will never judge you, and all conversations are confidential. In most cases we can offer reassurance and put measures in place to help you, or signpost you to others with more expertise. Where issues are more serious, you may be able to interrupt your studies. The worst thing you can do is suffer in silence!

A note for parents, guardians or carers

We work hard to support all of our students, and encourage them to develop their independence in a way that recognises that asking for help is a sign of maturity. The transition into UK higher education can be challenging for even the most well-prepared students, so we try to put in place support structures that provide multiple ways to access information and to seek advice. Our well-established Academic (Personal) Tutoring system provides every student with a dedicated member of academic staff who oversees their wellbeing and progress throughout their degree. They will be asked to meet with their Academic (Personal) Tutor several times each year, and they will normally be the first point of contact should your child have any concerns, but as detailed above there are many alternative individuals and services available to them.

We are unable to share any information directly with parents, guardians and carers about an individual student, but can do so with their clear and direct permission (this usually has to be in writing). Where that permission is in place, in most cases, we are happy to work with families to resolve issues, but we do encourage students to approach us directly in the first instance.

We may have already met you at our Open Days and Offer Holder Visit Days, where it is always a pleasure to see your enthusiasm and pride for your children - we look forward to seeing you again on Graduation Day!