Aspire to HE - Impact Report by University of Wolverhampton

Aspire to HE - Impact Report_V17 04/12/2023 16:48 Page 1

ASPIRE TO HE 2017–2023

IMPACT REPORT Our Vision: By the time they leave school or college, we want every young person we work with to be in the position to make an informed and ambitious decision about higher education and their future; to have secured a place on their route of choice and have the skills and mind-sets which will help them to succeed – and crucially sustain – their place on that pathway.

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ABOUT US UNI CONNECT The Uni Connect programme was introduced in 2017. Funded by the Office for Students (OfS) the programme has made enormous progress, reaching just over 1.3 million young people between 2017 and 2022 and just over 2,500 schools per year. It has delivered nearly half of all outreach activities recorded on HE outreach tracking systems in this time, the rest being delivered by universities and colleges via their Access and Participation Plans, and third sector

organisations. The real value of the Uni Connect programme is the sustained and progressive nature of its delivery. The programme delivers impartial Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) to thousands of schools and colleges across England. It promotes academic, vocational, and technical routes through education and into employment for young people from backgrounds who are statistically unlikely to enter university or higherlevel study.

UNDERSTANDING OUR REGION Aspire to HE is the Uni Connect Partnership active in Telford and Wrekin and the Black Country, which encompasses Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley and Walsall. Out of 333 local authorities, the Black Country borough was ranked second most vulnerable on the new 'cost-of-living vulnerability index'.

Locally, each of our areas are above the national average:

Nationally, 20% of the population lives in the most deprived quintile.

Despite this, we have already seen over 8,000+* enrolments to HE from some of the most underrepresented groups in our local area after having taken part in the Aspire to HE programme.

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Dudley - 28% Sandwell - 60% Walsall - 52% Wolverhampton - 52% Telford and Wrekin – 30%

*HESA data 2017/18-2021/22. Does not include 2022/23-2023-24 enrolments

•

Edinburgh

Manchester

•

•Birmingham •Cardiff London

TUNDRA classifies local areas across England into five equal groups – or quintiles - based on the proportion of 16 year old state-funded mainstream school pupils who participate in higher education aged 18 or 19 years. Quintile 1 (Q1) being the lowest participation area.

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | ABOUT US

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POLAR4 classifies local areas across the UK according to the young participation rate in higher education. The young participation rate is calculated by dividing the number of young people from each area who enter higher education aged 18 or 19 by the young population of that area. Quintile 1 (Q1) being the lowest participation area.

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OUR AIMS Aspire to HE aims to ensure that regardless of their situation or background, all young people have a fair and equal chance of fulfilling their potential.

future. In doing so, students are able to progress and achieve the best possible outcomes for themselves.

A vital part of the work that Aspire to HE do is ensuring that young people are receiving the most impactful experience through the support and guidance provided. In taking a targeted approach to working with students on a sustained programme, we hope to equip students with the necessary tools and skills they need in order to make ambitious and informed decisions about their

Working closely with our local schools and partner colleges, we specifically target students within the lowest HE participation wards* within Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley, Walsall and Telford and Wrekin. *Using POLAR and TUNDRA data

Walsall

Dudley Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin Brierley Hill Brockmoor and Pensnett Castle and Priory Coseley East Lye and Wollescote Netherton and Woodside St. Andrews St. Thomas's

Sandwell Friar Park Great Bridge Hateley Heath Princes End

Brookside Hadley and Leegomery Ketley and Oakengates The Nedge Woodside

Arleston Cuckoo Oak Donnington Malinslee Wrockwardine Wood and Trench

Birchills Leamore Blakenall Bloxwich East Bloxwich West

Wolverhampton Bilston East East Park Low Hill

Year on year Aspire to HE have consistently achieved and surpassed the OfS target of engagement within these wards.

22-23 0 2 g in r u d h ked wit r o w s t n e d u 21,845 st ards w t e g r a t m 6,472 fro

7 1 0 2 e c n i s s t n e d u t s 9 73,12 students, we rd a w t e rg ur ta As well as o rds students a w to y it v ti c also target a cteristics: ra a h c g in w o with the foll

Q1 White Working-Class Boys

Live within TUNDRA/POLAR Q1 In receipt of Free School Meals

Looked After or Care Experienced

Disability

Underrepresented Ethnic Groups

Mature Students

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | OUR AIMS

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HOW WE DO IT

Since 2017 we have: h Worked wit

73,129 14,295

Carried out h Worked wit

activities

schools

Campus Experience Days & Campus Tours

Summer Schools

Mentoring

Since 2017

342

3,647

On campus residential events including subject specific and IAG input, targeting groups that may still be unsure about Higher Education.

student engagements

415 activities

8,685

student engagements Campus Experience Days at The University of Wolverhampton - as part of our targeted programme for Uni Connect ward students.

186

students

student engagements

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | HOW WE DO IT

activities

4,576

Small group and 1-2-1 mentoring, these can be subject specific or focussed on study skills. We currently run ‘Octoplus Maths Mentoring’.

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HE Information, Advice and Guidance

Subject Specific Masterclasses

Faculty Projects

Since 2017

8,948

501

activities

134,390

318

activities

12,111

10,133

student engagements

Impartial advice and guidance offered to learners of all ages to help them explore their educational and vocational interests and future career prospects.

In-person or online masterclass sessions offered to pupils looking to increase their subject knowledge. Previous sessions have had a STEM focus.

On campus HE experience days featuring subjectspecific, often crosscurricular input from academic staff at the University of Wolverhampton.

Attainment Raising

Engagement with Adults

Strategic Outreach

Since 2022

Since 2017

Since 2021

activities

746

A range of workshops, visits and residentials aimed at engaging an older audience, often with their children.

542 activities

11,109

student engagements

In collaboration with the University of Wolverhampton we offer Maths and Science GCSE and Maths A-Level support; a KS3 metacognition programme; revision skills workshops and 1-2-1 mentoring.

Collaborative projects that aim to address gaps in outreach, or advice and guidance, for disadvantaged groups.

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | HOW WE DO IT

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DATA, EVALUATION & IMPACT ENHANCED THEORIES OF CHANGE Our sustained programmes of activity are evaluated using Enhanced Theories of Change.

The Enhanced Theory of Change approach provides a robust evaluation format by mapping out links between activities and outcomes, allowing us to identify change mechanisms for the purposes of programme development as well as impact measurement.

Short-term Outcomes Long-term Outcomes (Sometimes called Intermediary Outcomes)

Activities & Outputs Long-term Goals (Sometimes called intermediary Impact)

Change Mechanism

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | DATA, EVALUATION & IMPACT

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POLAR4 DATA

TILES N I U Q 4 R A POL ed with 26,714

36.99%

e work To date we hav LAR4 Q1, making up 37% of PO students from of students we have er the total numb from Q1 and Q2. 7% worked with. 6

30.12%

3.53%

8.06%

21.30%

460 students

55%

e 2020/21, Th r a e y ic m e enrolled 460 n In the acad to p m a h r e f Wolv OLAR4 Q1 P University o m o fr s t n entra ‘young’ new

255 of these ed with rk students wo E H to e Aspir

49%

worked 224 of these HE more to e ir with Asp than once

‘I loved it as a student and even now in my 2nd year of university I still recall the activities with fond memories. I would hope to get a chance as a current student to help be a part of something like this for potential students.’ Kyla-Shanice Barnes-Yates. University of Wolverhampton student, BA (Hons) Sociology and History.

‘My experiences with Aspire to HE was absolutely amazing, and I’ve gained a lot of new knowledge about different topics and related to my course too.’ Jasmeen Kaur, University of Wolverhampton student, BA (hons) Early Childhood Education.

‘Taking part in Aspire to HE made me feel more confident and comfortable in knowing what to expect when applying and studying at university.’ Anonymous, University of Wolverhampton student, BMid (Hons) Midwifery.

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | DATA, EVALUATION & IMPACT

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OUTCOMES ENROLMENTS Aspire to HE record activities and track students through The Higher Education Access Tracker (HEAT). Using HEAT, we’re also able to track university enrolments via HESA data.

Since 2017

8000+

Aspire to HE students have enrolled onto a HE course*

3009

of these enrolmen ts were to:

*those that have taken part in at least 1 activity

The Unive Wolverha

A large portion of Aspire to HE students have also progressed on to:

The most popular courses that Aspire to

Birmingham City University

University of Worcester

L aw

Bio

The University of Birmingham

Aston University

i c a l Sc

Coventry University

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | OUTCOMES

am ed i c Sc i e

Keele University

University College Birmingham

Staffordshire University

Ps yc h o l o g y

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Year 2

90%

iversity of rhampton

of all Aspire to HE University of Wolverhampton students progress on to their second year of study *on average

39%

39% of POLAR Q1 Aspire to HE students have progressed on to HE

Aspire to HE

2021/22

te r Sc i

t i n g & Fi n

sin

l t Nur si n

HE students go on to study are:

s M a n age

The POLAR Q1 rate of progression on to HE, since Uni Connect launched in 2017.

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | OUTCOMES

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STRATEGIC OUTREACH PROJECTS TARGET AUDIENCE

e 3 and d groups at Key Stag te en es pr rre de un y an Aspire to can take place with idance and outreach. gu d an e vic ad n, Strategic Outreach io tions at cal partner organisa e gaps in local inform lo ar th e wi er th gs e tin er ee wh m e p ov ab king Grou . Some of the tegic Outreach Wor nce in our local area re ffe di a e ak HE hosts regular Stra m to g to projects that aim to help direct fundin ects include: recently funded proj

Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) to support young people in Sandwell Connexions and Sandwell Council The project aimed to provide IAG interviews to young people in Sandwell to support them in making informed decisions about their future. Research suggests that there are a myriad of factors affecting pupils in Sandwell that impact upon overall progression to Higher Education. The project aimed to target some of the most vulnerable pupils in a number of local schools to help provide careers guidance and support.

Early intervention for young people identified as being at risk of becoming NEET in Telford The Marches Local Enterprise Partnership for Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin

The project engaged 279 learners via in-person interviews 83 parents and young people attended the annual Connexions parents event in June 2023 1,807 Year 11/12 pupils and parents attended a Careers Fair with a dedicated FE/HE Zone

The project aimed to support young people in Years 8 and 9 who were identified as being most at risk of becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training). The project looked to enable early intervention, raise aspirations, and provide targeted support for the young people to identify their skills and possible destinations. Early intervention supports young people to make better informed decisions about the opportunities available to them as well as being able to identify how curriculum subjects develop transferable skills.

The project engaged 30 Year 9 pupils The young people thrived in the workplace and external settings as they were able to experience these environments firsthand and make direct links to their own skills, needs and what is required by the employers and education providers.

“My son and I enjoyed the careers interview. The careers adviser then took us to the college there and supported us to speak to the college. This was good because my son and I are not very confident or know what questions to ask.”

ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | STRATEGIC OUTREACH PROJECTS

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English Café Raising aspiration and attainment for refugee groups through English Language sessions and IAG Access and Outreach at the University of Wolverhampton The project aimed to offer refugees and asylum seekers the opportunity to attend formal English Language classes and a progression pathway to IELTS classes. Attendees were then offered the opportunity to visit the University to look at the facilities and speak to subject staff. If they required additional support, this was offered via one-to-one IAG sessions with an Education Guidance Advisor.

The project engaged 23 registered learners in Wolverhampton and 27 registered learners in Telford. The project delivered on its aims to nurture change, positivity and practise inclusion and acceptance.

Future Proof Raising the aspirations and social and emotional learning of students in Wolverhampton Switch Midlands Switch Midlands identified the need to enhance the support of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) for local pupils looking to progress into HE. This project aimed to deliver a two-phased programme in Wolverhampton. Phase One was a universal approach, sharing the lived experiences of role models from the priority areas to raise aspirations across whole year groups. Phase Two then supported the SEL of targeted students from the priority areas with the view to improving the likelihood of progressing into HE due to improved personal development and the feelings of confidence, inclusion and resilience.

The project engaged 1331 Year 10 pupils > An increase from half to two-thirds felt that HE was an option for them by the end of the session.

“Thank you for such an amazing learning experience, thank you teachers! I know how hard you work for students and it is difficult to teach most people whose second language is English. You are very patient and full of information. I really enjoyed the English Café vibe they are very nice kind and friendly people.”

> More than 80% of learners felt more supported in their aspirations than before the session.

If you would like to find out more about our funded projects, or the support offered to schools through Aspire to HE, please visit our website at:

www.AspiretoHE.co.uk ASPIRE TO HE | IMPACT REPORT | STRATEGIC OUTREACH PROJECTS

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“I have worked with Aspire to HE since 2018 and I am immensely proud of all that we have achieved to date. Many of us in the team have experienced educational disadvantage, been first in family to attend university or are from a background underrepresented in higher education and are firm advocates for increasing opportunity and widening participation. We are passionate about supporting young people to achieve their ambitions by helping remove academic, financial and cultural barriers, and we value our partnerships with schools, colleges and universities to enable this to happen.” - Gemma Kay, Director, Aspire to HE

University of Wolverhampton Stafford Street Wolverhampton WV1 1LY AspiretoHE@wlv.ac.uk www.aspiretohe.co.uk @aspiretohe @aspiretohe