Universities unite to celebrate care leavers and promote access to higher education

24 October 2011

National Care Leavers' Week 26th October-1st November 2011

Universities across England, Scotland and Wales are uniting to spread a shared message of celebration of their students from foster care and residential care as part of National Care Leavers Week 2011 (26th Oct – 1st Nov).

Against a backdrop of rising tuition fees and competitive student recruitment, universities across Britain have taken the unusual step of standing side by side to spread the message that care leavers are welcomed, celebrated and supported in higher education. University staff who work with care leavers are posting the same signature at the bottom of their emails to make it clear that the higher education sector as a whole recognises that more needs to be done to encourage young people from care into university. It is a gesture which sends a loud message that universities are genuinely committed to encouraging young people from care to find out more about what higher education could help them to achieve.

Many of the participating universities hold the Buttle UK Quality Mark for commitment to care leavers, and many have made clear mention of support for care leavers within their Access Agreement – the action plan which universities have to produce in order to charge higher tuition fees. Lou Silver, a Student Support Officer at Nottingham Trent University, said, "This may seem like a small gesture, but university workers across the country are working incredibly hard to make the path to university smoother for young people from care, and we wanted to shout about the fact that we are making huge efforts to work collaboratively, not competitively, for the benefit of these young people".

The East Midlands regional network of university staff working with care leavers has also timed its next meeting to fall during the week. EM:CLASS (East Midlands: Care Leaver Activities and Student Support) is a vibrant collective which aims to share best practice to increase the number of care leavers entering higher education (email EMCLASS@jiscmail.ac.uk).

Chief Executive of The Buttle Trust Gerri McAndrew said: "We are delighted that universities are using the opportunity of National Care Leaver's Week to demonstrate their shared commitment to improving opportunities for care leavers entering high education. Over half the universities in the UK have made a commitment to care leavers through our Quality Mark scheme, and over the last 10 years we have seen the numbers entering HE rise from 1% to 7% in England. But this figure is still pitiful compared to the 30% that attend HE in the general population. There is still so much to do, and at this challenging time more than ever, to give care leavers the opportunities through education they deserve."

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