Supporting a student away at university

Ask where they are and who is nearby. If possible, agree one next step together: calling their GP, speaking to the university wellbeing team or asking a trusted person to sit with them. Listen before trying to solve everything.

Agree how and when you will next speak. Keep ordinary conversation too; every call need not become a check on symptoms. Ask what they would want you to do if you cannot reach them.^[1]

If you think help is needed now, use the distance-crisis guide. For someone who may be missing, see reporting a missing person.

If they spend most of the year at university, encourage them to register with a GP near their term-time address. University support and NHS treatment are separate; they may need both. When visiting home, they can ask a local practice about temporary care.

Before a move or holiday, ask their current team who will provide appointments, prescriptions and urgent support while they are away. Do not assume a transfer happens automatically.^[2]

If they have new experiences that could be psychosis, ask about the local Early Intervention in Psychosis team. For help tonight, use urgent help where they are; do not wait for a routine referral.

Look on the university’s own website for “concern about a student”, wellbeing or student support. Give their name, course or student number if known, where they are, what you have noticed and your contact details. Ask who will receive the concern and how to follow up.

For an urgent concern outside office hours, check its published campus-security or out-of-hours route. Arrangements differ: Newcastle, for example, publishes separate daytime wellbeing and out-of-hours security contacts. These do not replace 999 in an emergency.^[3]

You can raise a concern even if staff cannot discuss the student’s private information with you. Ask the student whether they want you involved and what they agree can be shared. Serious safety concerns may require staff to consider sharing without consent; do not promise secrecy or assume that naming an emergency contact guarantees a call.

Ask the university about its trusted-contact policy. The student should choose someone appropriate for them; this need not be a parent. Check who is recorded, whether the details are current and when the university may use them. Policies and circumstances differ.^[4]

For conversations with a GP or care team, read confidentiality and being heard.

Ask what support the student wants to explore with their tutor, disability team or students’ union adviser: changes to study arrangements, deadline support or a break. Their university’s process may be called interruption, suspension, support to study or fitness to study.

Before making a decision, ask for the written policy, available support, evidence needed, review or appeal route and conditions for returning. Check effects on funding, fees, accommodation and, where relevant, a visa. These depend on the university and the student’s circumstances; an interruption is not simply an informal decision to stop attending.^[5]

Help them make a plan they can live with. A change of course or a break need not decide the rest of their life.

Student Space offers information and routes to support for UK higher-education students, including a university support finder. Their students’ union may also offer independent advice.

Some universities have a student-run Nightline listening service. Check their university’s current listing, contact method, term dates and opening hours. The national Nightline Association closed in 2025; individual services may still operate, but there is no single nationwide 24-hour Nightline.^[6]

For urgent concerns, use urgent help. You do not need to wait for a student service to open.

Be clear about when you can talk and what practical help you can offer. A parent, partner or friend cannot be the only plan for keeping someone safe. Agree other contacts and professional support where possible.

For your own support, see when you are running on empty and setting boundaries. If they are under 18, also use the under-18 guide.