Oxford University has said students who have been affected by the death of George Floyd can apply for special consideration in their exams.
Professor Louise Richardson, the vice-chancellor, told students about the move in an open letter, signed by the heads of Oxford’s colleges, following pressure in recent weeks to act.
She thanked students for writing to her about “the traumatic effect of the brutality which killed George Floyd” and said the death of the unarmed African American in US police custody was “a manifestation of institutionalised racism”.
“Any student taking university assessments who feels their performance has been affected should submit a self-assessment mitigating circumstances form after their final examination or assessment,” she wrote.
Oxford protest over Cecil Rhodes statue - In pictures
Heads of house will alert tutors and welfare staff to the potential need for workload to be cut and “urge colleagues to reach out” to those who apply.
Prof Richardson also told the Oxford students’ union that maths and science degrees had secured a grant to “decolonise” curriculums, calling it “an area that is frequently overlooked”.
She said: “Many departments in social sciences have begun work on making their curriculum more inclusive and adding diverse voices to it.
“This includes steps such as integrating race and gender questions into topics, embedding teaching on colonialism and empire into courses, changing reading lists to ensure substantial representation of a diverse range of voices, and ensuring better coverage of issues concerning the global South in syllabuses.”
British universities have faced renewed calls to address their ties to the British Empire in recent weeks.
Hundreds of protesters descended on Oriel College, Oxford, last week in their “Rhodes Must Fall” campaign demanding it bring down a statue of Cecil Rhodes, the Victorian imperialist, but the college stood by it.
Students wrote an open letter to the institution, backed by 26 local councillors, saying its presence showed Oxford had “failed to address its institutional racism”. Oxford has previously been criticised for its low intake of black students.
It followed the toppling of a figure honouring Edward Colston, the 17th century slave owner, in Bristol during Black Lives Matter protests.
Liverpool University prompted criticism last week for agreeing to abandon William Gladstone, the four-time British Prime Minister, as the name for a halls of residence after students complained about his father’s links to slave-holding.