Overcoming By Degrees: Exploring the impact of widening participation measures designed to improve care leavers’ experiences of higher education (PhD Studentship)
Loughborough University Development Trust, with additional support from the Frank Buttle Trust.
This study is a PhD studentship supervised by Professor Harriet Ward of CCFR, and will focus on an issue of key significance to current debates on widening participation in higher education and improving outcomes for looked after children.
- Explore the impact of measures designed to improve access, experiences and completion rates for minority groups in higher
education.
- Compare the provision made and the experiences of students from minority groups in selected FE universities/colleges following the introduction of widening participation schemes.
- Investigate the impact of the Frank Buttle Trust Quality Mark which recognises institutions who go that extra mile to support students who have been in public care.
- Compare the provision made specifically for care leavers in a minimum of twelve universities/colleges which have been awarded the Frank Buttle Trust Quality Mark with others that have not been awarded it and/or who have not given specific consideration to care leavers
- The study will use data collected by those institutions already awarded the Frank Buttle Trust Quality Mark.
- Questionnaires will be used to obtain data from students across a range of minority groups who have used their institution's widening participation services including both institutions with and without the Quality Mark.
- Interviews will be used to carry out an in depth study with widening participation staff and students at a selection of institutions and key professionnals involved with care leavers in relevant local authorities.
The first year of the study has involved carrying out a review of the existing literature, developing the methodology and designing an online questionnaire, which has been circulated to student support staff in colleges and universities asking what services they offer to care leavers and how that support is provided.
The Frank Buttle Trust has also helped establish an advisory group to provide practical advice and assistance throughout the study and this group met for the first time earlier this year. The group consists of care leavers and representatives of various organisations involved in supporting care leavers in higher education including a representative from a local authority, from a higher education institution and the Office for Fair Access.
- The review of the literature has highlighted the difference in higher education participation rates between care leavers and the overall population.
- Only 6 percent of care leavers are currently estimated to be in higher education compared to approximately 40 percent of 17 to 30 year olds in the population as a whole.
- Although, the literature shows an increasing recognition of care leavers as an under- represented group in higher education, very little research has so far been undertaken exploring the experiences of these individuals or
how effectively their support needs are being met.
The next stage of the research will involve exploring official statistical data, as well as data about support services made available by colleges and universities taking part in the study. An online questionnaire will also be circulated to care leavers and students from other disadvantaged backgrounds asking about their own experiences of higher education and accessing support. This will help build a picture of the situation for care leavers and provide a means of comparing the types of issues faced by care leavers with other disadvantaged students.
The final stage of the research will involve selecting a number of areas of the country for an in depth study of the issues. Care leavers, student support staff and local authority staff from care leaving teams will be interviewed about their perceptions and experiences to explore how support is provided in practice, how the different agencies liaise and how well care leavers think their needs are being met.
Georgia Hyde-Dryden (Ph.D student)
Professor Harriet Ward (Supervisor)
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