The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has today [Thursday 23 July] published five reports on supporting students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Responding, Professor Les Ebdon, Director of Fair Access to Higher Education, said:
“Understanding what works best to improve fair access and ensure students from disadvantaged backgrounds are successful in their studies is fundamental to OFFA’s work. These important reports examine why students from certain backgrounds are less likely to be successful in their studies than their more advantaged peers and consider how best to assess the effectiveness of the work universities and colleges are doing to reduce gaps in attainment.
“At OFFA, we have challenged universities and colleges to consider how they can address differences in outcomes through their access agreements, as part of their work to support learners through their studies and as they prepare for life after graduation. Universities and colleges have placed an increased focus on this area in their 2016-17 access agreements, and have set themselves stretching targets in order to measure their progress [note 1].
“HEFCE is right to point out that more needs to be done to better understand the evidence of what works to improve outcomes for groups of students who don’t do as well as their peers. Most importantly, universities and colleges need to translate their significant commitment in this area into improved outcomes.
“In line with the national strategy for access and student success, we will continue to work closely with HEFCE and the whole sector to improve the evidence around fair access and support effective practice by universities and colleges. This should help ensure that all students – irrespective of background – can truly fulfil their potential.”
ENDS
For further information contact
Zita Adamson (OFFA Communications Manager) on 0117 931 7272 or Sean Beynon (OFFA Press and Communications Adviser) on 0117 931 7022, or email press@offa.org.uk
Notes for editors
- Under their 2016-17 access agreements, which were approved by OFFA last week, universities and colleges predicted that they will spend £148 million to support students through their studies. They also predict they will spend £54.6 million on progression activities, to help students prepare for employment or further study. In these access agreements, around three quarters of institutions set a target to improve the rates of students continuing with their studies, while around 15 per cent set a specific target to help ensure that their students were well prepared for life after graduation.
- The Office for Fair Access (OFFA) is an independent, non-departmental public body established under the Higher Education Act 2004 to help promote and safeguard fair access to higher education for people from under-represented groups. All English universities and colleges that wish to charge higher fees must make plans to promote and sustain fair access, including outreach (e.g. summer schools, mentoring, after-school tuition, links with schools and colleges in disadvantaged areas), activities to improve retention and success, and financial support such as bursaries and scholarships. The plans are called access agreements and must be agreed with OFFA, which then monitors their implementation.