Latest news with #UniversitiesUK
The Independent
a day ago
- General
- The Independent
Top universities pledge more support for care leavers to widen access to courses
Top universities have pledged more support for care leavers – including contextual admissions and bursaries – to get more disadvantaged young people into higher education. The Russell Group, which represents many of the most selective universities in the UK, has also set out a plan to improve the transparency and consistency of policies for contextual offers. In a report, the group of 24 research-intensive universities made a series of commitments to improve access for under-represented students. It comes after Universities UK (UUK), which represents 141 universities, recently called for evidence to better understand how universities use contextual admissions – which take into account a student's circumstances and background to recognise the barriers they have faced. Practices already used by universities to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds progress into higher education include reducing offer requirements and guaranteeing interviews. Russell Group universities will now launch a taskforce to develop practical methods to 'bring consistency to the language used' for contextual admissions policies across their institutions. The paper said: 'Clear and consistent language on contextual admissions practices means that future learners exploring their options for applying to higher education better understand policies across institutions, ensuring they can make better-informed decisions.' All Russell Group universities have said they will provide a tailored support package for all care leaver students – including accommodation support, bursaries and contextual admissions. Care leavers are a 'disproportionately under-represented' group across higher education (HE), with just 14% of care leavers in higher education by the age of 19 in 2021/22 compared to 47% of the wider population, the report from the group said. A lack of a stable family network to fall back on for financial help or emotional support means they may require greater pastoral care, and they may need year-round accommodation. Once in place, the Russell Group universities have said they will extend this support package to care-experienced and estranged students to help them gain access to university and deal with the additional challenges they face during their studies. It comes after Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson called on universities in January to 'play a stronger role' in expanding access and improving outcomes for disadvantaged students. In November, Ms Phillipson announced that undergraduate tuition fees in England, which had been frozen at £9,250 since 2017, would rise to £9,535 from 2025/26. She also announced that maintenance loans would increase in line with inflation in the 2025-26 academic year to help students with their living costs. The Russell Group has repeated its calls for the Government to reintroduce maintenance grants for the poorest students in England, and review the parental income thresholds that determine how much students can borrow to help ease 'the growing financial pressures on students'. The Government is due to set out its plan for higher education reform in the summer. Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group, said: 'As educational inequalities have grown at school level since the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis, it's more important than ever that universities are ambitious in their attempts to close these gaps and remove barriers for students with the potential to thrive at university. 'Care-experienced students remain one of the most under-represented groups in higher education, with specific challenges particularly around finances and independent living. 'That's why we've made this commitment to make sure all our universities are offering a tailored package of support, so these students get the assistance they need not just to gain a place, but to thrive at university with the right resources.' In April, UUK announced a joint project with Ucas and the Sutton Trust to review the criteria used for contextual admissions to encourage greater consistency across universities. The current admissions system is 'hard to navigate and a barrier' which is potentially putting off young people from reaching university, UUK said. A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: 'Through our ambitious Plan for Change we will restore universities as engines of opportunity, aspiration and growth. 'We know there are baked-in inequalities and regional disparities that remain in our education system, which is why we are demanding that providers play a stronger role in expanding access and improving outcomes for disadvantaged students. We welcome this commitment from Russell Group universities. 'We aim to publish our plans for HE reform as part of the Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy White Paper in the summer, as we fix the foundations of higher education to deliver change for students.' Katharine Sacks-Jones, chief executive of Become, the national charity for children in care and young care leavers, said: 'Care-experienced young people tell us how tough it is to get into and stay in higher education. 'So the Russell Group's expanded help is very welcome and could be a game changer.' She added: 'This is exactly the kind of step we need other universities to follow.' Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children's Commissioner for England, said: 'I hope this move from the Russell Group inspires other institutions to widen access to care experienced young people, improving their offer so they can navigate higher education with confidence.'
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Students warned of subject cold spots as universities cut courses
Students could face subject "cold spots" if universities are not allowed to work together more to deliver courses, according to a new review by Universities UK, which represents 141 institutions, found universities were reluctant to collaborate because of concerns around breaking business laws designed to promote healthy competition between Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it wanted to support collaboration where possible in a "very challenging" financial situation for the sector. A government review of how higher education will be funded in the long term is under way in England, and is expected to be published later this year. The Universities UK report said greater collaboration between universities could be a solution for institutions who are struggling to cut costs and become more universities are already delivering courses this way, to the benefit of student Joe Vincent, 33, lives at home in Devon with his partner and baby while studying in Plymouth for a masters degree in pharmacy from the University of Bath, over 130 miles away."It's everything for me", he says, adding that being able to study and qualify locally "is the difference between me having this career, and not having this career".In 2018, he trained as a pharmacy technician at a nearby college, because there was no local university course available to become a pharmacist. This close collaboration between universities is also intended to meet a shortage of community pharmacists in the South West. Sir Nigel Carrington, who led the review for Universities UK, said more clarity was needed to prevent universities having to make decisions about which courses to close, or merge, in isolation from one told the BBC there was a risk of "cold spots emerging in which there will be no opportunity for prospective students to study the subjects they want to study in their home cities or their home regions".He said neighbouring universities should be allowed to look at which subjects they recruit the fewest students for and agree that only one of them should teach that course, "divvying up other courses between them" and working out where delivering a subject would be most cost effective. After the University of Cardiff announced job losses earlier this year, vice-chancellor Prof Wendy Larner told The Times newspaper she was "deeply frustrated" by legal advice not to consult other universities on the impact of course closures, adding the system was "set up to enhance competition, not collaboration".The CMA enforces the existing law, which applies across different sectors to protect consumers, in this case students. In a blog post published on Friday, it said it recognised the financial problems facing universities and that it wanted to support collaboration where CMA said ideas such as sharing back-office functions, or discussing possible mergers with other universities, were unlikely to raise competition law concerns. Juliette Enser, executive director of competition enforcement at the CMA, said: "We know universities are interested in collaborating on courses they offer and we are working to understand how this fits with overall plans for higher education reform."It would be for the government to change the law, or how universities are regulated, to allow up-front conversations to be had about whether some subjects need a different kind of collaboration in different regions. University budgets have been strained by a 16% drop in international students - who pay higher fees than domestic students - after changes to visa rules came into force last income in the form of fees has also failed to keep up with inflation, rising for the first time in eight years this autumn from £9,250 to £9, higher education regulator in England, the Office for Students, has said four in 10 universities are heading for a financial deficit by this summer, despite thousands of job losses already having been cutbacks or closure announcements have also followed one after the other this year, from the University of East Anglia to Sheffield, Durham, Bournemouth and many has become a patchwork of individual institutional decisions, largely driven by market forces, including how many students want to sign up for individual subjects. The government said it had been clear that universities needed to increase opportunities for students and contribute more to growth in the economy. In response to the review, Jacqui Smith, the Skills Minister, said: "I am pleased to see the sector taking steps to grip this issue as we restore our universities as engines of opportunity, aspiration and growth."A review of the longer term future of higher education in England is expected to be published before the summer.
South Wales Guardian
15-05-2025
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Set up small universities in towns to drive growth, shadow Commons leader says
Jesse Norman said there were 50 small cities and towns he had identified which lacked a university, which he believed could be a catalyst for economic growth. He told MPs that the first students graduated this year from the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering – a university in his Hereford and South Herefordshire constituency. He said it had given them the 'hands-on skill of an apprenticeship, but also the rigour of a masters' degree'. He said smaller institutions, which were more 'agile', had been lost from the university landscape. Mr Norman told MPs: 'I mention it now because it highlights what I think could be considered a lack of ambition in the way we've thought about higher education as a country over the last 50, possibly even longer, years. 'This is an institution that is not just focused on marginal educational gain, but transformational improvement. To take a person, male or female, young or old, who might never have thought of going to university at all to help them find their passions, head, hands and heart and take them as far as they can go.' He added: 'This is the small modular reactor of British higher education. 'I raise this because I want to invite the Government and members across this House to consider whether we could not do this elsewhere. There are 50, at least, small cities and towns and large towns in this country which lack higher education and higher economic growth. There's a huge need for specialist Stem skills, vast amounts of talent deprived of opportunity and this can be part of the solution.' The call from Mr Norman during business questions comes against a backdrop of difficulties for the university sector across the UK. Numerous university bosses have announced large numbers of redundancies in recent months in a bid to save costs. The University of Nottingham announced 258 in April while in Scotland the University of Edinburgh said 350 jobs would be cut. In the Welsh capital, Cardiff University announced plans to cut 400 jobs, which was later reduced to 286, and Queen's University in Belfast said 270 jobs could go. Earlier this month, the chief executive of Universities UK, Vivienne Stern, said falling per-student funding, a decline in international student numbers amid immigration rule changes, and a drop in research grants were all contributing to falling income for institutions. This week the Government announced it was considering a 6% levy on international students, which Universities UK fears could further damage student numbers. Commons leader Lucy Powell acknowledged the importance of Stem subjects, and told MPs her son was studying engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University. Ms Powell said: 'I hear what he says about the new technical university in his constituency in Herefordshire, it sounds like a really very important and good innovation to provide technical education and engineering pathways, particularly for people from backgrounds that might not otherwise access such education.' Ms Powell said she was disappointed in the lack of praise from Mr Norman for the growth figures, released on Thursday, which showed a 0.7% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) between January and March. Mr Norman had said: 'We've had a week of mixed economics, growth slightly up, wage growth weak, a spike in unemployment, as everyone had predicted in the case of national insurance. 'We've also had an immigration policy launched with echoes of Enoch Powell and a prime minister who doesn't know the difference it appears between capital and current spending in relation to hospices who are seeking to support people day-to-day across this country who are literally at death's door.' Ms Powell replied: 'He didn't seem to want to welcome the good news on growth figures out this morning, and he didn't mention the interest rate cut last week either.' She added: 'Former chancellor George Osborne said of his current leader and the stance of his current party that they're more interested in culture wars than having a serious economic plan. I mean he's right, isn't he?' She continued: 'They've got no idea where they stand on the economy, they've got no plan for the economy, we've got a plan, we've got a plan for growth, a plan to improve living standards, a plan to put money back in people's pockets and today people are starting to see the fruits of that.'
Rhyl Journal
15-05-2025
- Business
- Rhyl Journal
Set up small universities in towns to drive growth, shadow Commons leader says
Jesse Norman said there were 50 small cities and towns he had identified which lacked a university, which he believed could be a catalyst for economic growth. He told MPs that the first students graduated this year from the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering – a university in his Hereford and South Herefordshire constituency. He said it had given them the 'hands-on skill of an apprenticeship, but also the rigour of a masters' degree'. He said smaller institutions, which were more 'agile', had been lost from the university landscape. Mr Norman told MPs: 'I mention it now because it highlights what I think could be considered a lack of ambition in the way we've thought about higher education as a country over the last 50, possibly even longer, years. 'This is an institution that is not just focused on marginal educational gain, but transformational improvement. To take a person, male or female, young or old, who might never have thought of going to university at all to help them find their passions, head, hands and heart and take them as far as they can go.' He added: 'This is the small modular reactor of British higher education. 'I raise this because I want to invite the Government and members across this House to consider whether we could not do this elsewhere. There are 50, at least, small cities and towns and large towns in this country which lack higher education and higher economic growth. There's a huge need for specialist Stem skills, vast amounts of talent deprived of opportunity and this can be part of the solution.' The call from Mr Norman during business questions comes against a backdrop of difficulties for the university sector across the UK. Numerous university bosses have announced large numbers of redundancies in recent months in a bid to save costs. The University of Nottingham announced 258 in April while in Scotland the University of Edinburgh said 350 jobs would be cut. In the Welsh capital, Cardiff University announced plans to cut 400 jobs, which was later reduced to 286, and Queen's University in Belfast said 270 jobs could go. Earlier this month, the chief executive of Universities UK, Vivienne Stern, said falling per-student funding, a decline in international student numbers amid immigration rule changes, and a drop in research grants were all contributing to falling income for institutions. This week the Government announced it was considering a 6% levy on international students, which Universities UK fears could further damage student numbers. Commons leader Lucy Powell acknowledged the importance of Stem subjects, and told MPs her son was studying engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University. Ms Powell said: 'I hear what he says about the new technical university in his constituency in Herefordshire, it sounds like a really very important and good innovation to provide technical education and engineering pathways, particularly for people from backgrounds that might not otherwise access such education.' Ms Powell said she was disappointed in the lack of praise from Mr Norman for the growth figures, released on Thursday, which showed a 0.7% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) between January and March. Mr Norman had said: 'We've had a week of mixed economics, growth slightly up, wage growth weak, a spike in unemployment, as everyone had predicted in the case of national insurance. 'We've also had an immigration policy launched with echoes of Enoch Powell and a prime minister who doesn't know the difference it appears between capital and current spending in relation to hospices who are seeking to support people day-to-day across this country who are literally at death's door.' Ms Powell replied: 'He didn't seem to want to welcome the good news on growth figures out this morning, and he didn't mention the interest rate cut last week either.' She added: 'Former chancellor George Osborne said of his current leader and the stance of his current party that they're more interested in culture wars than having a serious economic plan. I mean he's right, isn't he?' She continued: 'They've got no idea where they stand on the economy, they've got no plan for the economy, we've got a plan, we've got a plan for growth, a plan to improve living standards, a plan to put money back in people's pockets and today people are starting to see the fruits of that.'
South Wales Argus
15-05-2025
- Business
- South Wales Argus
Set up small universities in towns to drive growth, shadow Commons leader says
Jesse Norman said there were 50 small cities and towns he had identified which lacked a university, which he believed could be a catalyst for economic growth. He told MPs that the first students graduated this year from the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering – a university in his Hereford and South Herefordshire constituency. He said it had given them the 'hands-on skill of an apprenticeship, but also the rigour of a masters' degree'. He said smaller institutions, which were more 'agile', had been lost from the university landscape. Mr Norman told MPs: 'I mention it now because it highlights what I think could be considered a lack of ambition in the way we've thought about higher education as a country over the last 50, possibly even longer, years. 'This is an institution that is not just focused on marginal educational gain, but transformational improvement. To take a person, male or female, young or old, who might never have thought of going to university at all to help them find their passions, head, hands and heart and take them as far as they can go.' He added: 'This is the small modular reactor of British higher education. 'I raise this because I want to invite the Government and members across this House to consider whether we could not do this elsewhere. There are 50, at least, small cities and towns and large towns in this country which lack higher education and higher economic growth. There's a huge need for specialist Stem skills, vast amounts of talent deprived of opportunity and this can be part of the solution.' The call from Mr Norman during business questions comes against a backdrop of difficulties for the university sector across the UK. Numerous university bosses have announced large numbers of redundancies in recent months in a bid to save costs. The University of Nottingham announced 258 in April while in Scotland the University of Edinburgh said 350 jobs would be cut. In the Welsh capital, Cardiff University announced plans to cut 400 jobs, which was later reduced to 286, and Queen's University in Belfast said 270 jobs could go. Earlier this month, the chief executive of Universities UK, Vivienne Stern, said falling per-student funding, a decline in international student numbers amid immigration rule changes, and a drop in research grants were all contributing to falling income for institutions. This week the Government announced it was considering a 6% levy on international students, which Universities UK fears could further damage student numbers. Commons leader Lucy Powell acknowledged the importance of Stem subjects, and told MPs her son was studying engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University. Ms Powell said: 'I hear what he says about the new technical university in his constituency in Herefordshire, it sounds like a really very important and good innovation to provide technical education and engineering pathways, particularly for people from backgrounds that might not otherwise access such education.' Ms Powell said she was disappointed in the lack of praise from Mr Norman for the growth figures, released on Thursday, which showed a 0.7% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) between January and March. Mr Norman had said: 'We've had a week of mixed economics, growth slightly up, wage growth weak, a spike in unemployment, as everyone had predicted in the case of national insurance. 'We've also had an immigration policy launched with echoes of Enoch Powell and a prime minister who doesn't know the difference it appears between capital and current spending in relation to hospices who are seeking to support people day-to-day across this country who are literally at death's door.' Ms Powell replied: 'He didn't seem to want to welcome the good news on growth figures out this morning, and he didn't mention the interest rate cut last week either.' She added: 'Former chancellor George Osborne said of his current leader and the stance of his current party that they're more interested in culture wars than having a serious economic plan. I mean he's right, isn't he?' She continued: 'They've got no idea where they stand on the economy, they've got no plan for the economy, we've got a plan, we've got a plan for growth, a plan to improve living standards, a plan to put money back in people's pockets and today people are starting to see the fruits of that.'
