Equality Analysis Report Student Recruitment & Admissions (WPO) 1. Title of policy: Access Agreement: WPO Activities* 2. Who does the policy, provision, procedure or practice affect? Students / staff / members of the public /visitors 3. Sources of evidence used NATIONAL SOURCES National, research, data sources and Guidance are used to inform the content of the Access Agreement and the policies, procedures and actions related to it. These include: National and International Research For example: Archer, L., DeWitt, J., Osborne, J., Dillon, J., Willis, B. and Wong, B. (2012) Science Aspirations, Capital and Family Habitus: How Families Shape Children s Engagement and Identification With Science, American Educational Research Journal, 49(5), 881-909. Dhanda, M. (2010). Understanding Disparities in Student Attainment: Black and Minority Ethnic Students Experience. University of Wolverhampton. http://www.wlv.ac.uk/docs/mdsummary.pdf Reay, D. (2004) Education and cultural capital: The implications of changing trends in education policies, Cultural Trends, 13(2), 73 86. Reay, D., David, M. & Ball, S.J. (2005) Degrees of choice: Social class, race and gender in higher education (Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham Books). Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission Progress made by high-attaining children from disadvantaged backgrounds Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission. Research Report June 2014 Whitty, G; Hayton, A and Tough, S (2015) Who you know, what you know and knowing the ropes: a review of evidence about access to higher education institutions in England Review of Education, Vol 3.1 *Please note this paper has been amended and is largely concerned with WPO activities rather than the Access Agreement as a policy document as originally requested. 1
HEFCE and OFFA (Office for Fair Access) Reports and Briefings For example: Harris, M. (2010) What more can be done to widen access to highly selective universities? A Report from Sir Martin Harris, Director of Fair Access (Bristol: OFFA). National Strategy for access and student success in higher education (BIS 2014) https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/299689/bis-14-516-national-strategy-for-access-and-student-success.pdf This publication collated data on the participation and attainment of key groups across the student lifecycle for example differences in degree outcome for students from ethnic minority groups and students with disabilities. OFFA s Topic Briefing on Mature Learners https://www.offa.org.uk/universities-and-colleges/guidance-and-useful-information/topicbriefings/offa-topic-briefing-mature-learners/ This online briefing highlighted the reduction in mature and part-time learners since 2012 and identified some potential strategies for attracting and supporting students. Guidance from OFFA and HEFCE Each year OFFA publishes Guidance on how to complete our Access Agreement, often prioritising certain groups or areas. This can include additional Guidance that responds to more immediate Government priorities e.g: Strategic guidance: developing your 2017-18 access agreement published in 2016 which gave some specific guidance related to groups with protected characteristics arising from the Government s Social Mobility Action Group whih casked universities to: gain a more in-depth understanding of the challenges faced by different groups of students when accessing and studying at your institution for example, you should: examine multiple indicators of disadvantage (OFFA 2016/01 paragraphs 29 to 30) OFFA publication 2016/01. focus more closely on the participation, success and progression of black and minority ethnic groups, where there are gaps in performance (paragraphs 31 to 33 address the under-representation of white British men from the most disadvantaged backgrounds (paragraph 34) consider how best to target areas and regions with low participation rates (paragraphs 35 to 36) consider how best to support students with mental health problems, Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD) such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia and ADD/ADHD; and/or an autism spectrum disorder such as Asperger Syndrome (paragraph 78). 2
THE ACTIVITIES The WPO offers a range of activities. For example in 2014-15 the WPO was involved in 85 events including, the Bath Taps into Science Fair. Thirty two events took place on campus, 18 of which were specific with the remainder more general activities. Our campus events reached 1812 students from over 160 schools and colleges across the UK. The WPO also runs a number of residential summer schools: a Maths summer school as part of our offer for local students taking BTEC vocational qualifications; a residential for students on our intensive sixth form programme On Track to Bath ; Science, Engineering and Social Science summer schools for Year 12s from across the country. The University is lead partner for the HEFCE funded Western Outreach Network (WON) which is part of a national initiative to encourage collaborative outreach activities and ensure that all schools have some contact with a university. The WON has enabled the HEI providers in the area to identify and engage with schools in rural locations that tend to have less contact with HEIs. http://won.ac.uk/. Ethnicity and Socio-Economic Class An action research project (The Student Success Project) was initiated by the Head of WP to explore the student experience of those from minority-ethnic and lower-socio economic groups. While it is difficult to draw any firm conclusions from the university s statistical data about possible differences in student success for these groups, the initial qualitative research indicated some areas of concern including: issues about academic support, social isolation and financial constraints. It proved more difficult than expected to engage with students but discussions took place which indicated that students were: surprised at the low-levels of diversity at Bath; had encountered assumptions based on stereotypes; found it more difficult than expected to develop social relationships outside their own group and, in some cases, were less likely to engage with academic sessions. Gender The Equality and Diversity team, Women into Engineering Group and WPO worked together to offer an Engineering Taster Day to eighty Year 8 and 9 girls from local schools. http://www.bath.ac.uk/equalities/news/news_0076.html The same group also developed a video funded by the WPO What is Engineering to encourage girls and women into engineering using case studies which can be found on the home page of the Faculty of Engineering http://www.bath.ac.uk/engineering/ 3
Age The pre-sessional residential for Access to HE students in HSS has been extended to all mature students in all Faculties and is nw an established part of th programme.. The event is supported by a range of academic and professional service staff and the Students Union. The research project Access to Higher Education: Mature student decision-making commissioned by the Western Vocational Progression Consortium 1 (WVPC) exploring barriers to Higher Education participation amongst adults in the Bristol/Bath has been completed. Lack of knowledge and information about progression routes, university courses, support services and finance were key issues for students and their staff. As a result a joint conference Moving up and Moving On for Access to HE students was organised by the WPO and held at Carpenter House. Attracting 69 students in the Bath and Bristol area it set out to: help students to make informed choices about courses and careers in their areas of interest; find out about university life and study from Access students who had already progressed to university; identify the elements of a good UCAS application; receive expert information on the range of financial support available; hear about the additional study sessions that universities offer; and share experiences with Access students from other colleges in the region. The event was very well-received and is now an annual collaborative event. TARGETTING ACTIVITIES WPO outreach activities are generally directed at specific groups to reflect our Access Agreement targets around increasing the number of students from lower socio-economic groups and low participation neighbourhoods. The University s targets for the 2017-18 Access Agreement are shown below. University of Bath Access Agreement Targets for 2017-18 Target 1: Increase the percentage of UK undergraduates entering Bath from neighbourhoods with low participation in higher education (POLAR 3 postcodes 1 and 2) to at least 17.3% in 2020-21. Target 2: Increase the percentage of UK undergraduate students entering Bath from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds (ACORN postcodes 4 and 5) to at least 12.1% in 2020-21. Target 3: The University will aim to meet or exceed the HESA location-adjusted benchmark for students commencing their degree who are in receipt of the Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA), currently 5.4%. (This target will be reviewed in future if the changes to DSA entitlement significantly alter the number of students indicating a disability in the admissions process who then do not receive any Award). In addition the University will have in place targets by 2017/18 to increase the percentage of UK undergraduate students entering Bath from schools performing below the national average at GCSE or equivalent and increase the percentage of UK undergraduate students entering Bath from schools or colleges performing below the national average on post-16 qualifications. These will be developed in consultation with OFFA. 1 University of Bath, Bath Spa University, Bristol University, UWE Bristol, University of Gloucester and the Royal Agricultural University 4
However OFFA (Office for Fair Access) also recognises inequalities around protected characteristics in particular age, disability, ethnicity and gender and there is an increasing understanding of the complexities of intersectionality which we aim to reflect in the Access Agreement and our eligibility criteria. In recognition of the complexity of the intersections between class, ethnicity, gender, age and disability we have set targets that focus upon socio-economic disadvantage by postcode, low participation neighbourhoods, school and college performance data, and entitlement for Disabled Students Allowance. All our outreach work aims to be inclusive and we also work with targeted groups where that is more effective, for example: mature students; those with vocational qualifications; care leavers; those from certain black and minority ethnic groups; students with disabilities; and males or females underrepresented in certain subject areas. University of Bath Access Agreement, 2017-18. While we aim to attract students from under-represented groups to all our activities eligibility criteria vary according to the intensity of the activity and the age of the participants. Generally speaking activities for younger age groups, where we aim to increase knowledge and raise awareness of higher education, (low intensity activities) are not as highly targeted as those for 6 th formers whom we aim to support into Bath or another leading university. An example of our eligibility criteria for our high intensity On Track to Bath programme is given below: On Track to Bath (sustained 6 th form programme) Eligibility Critieria Our Widening Participation Programme aims to encourage students from all backgrounds to study at the University of Bath. We are looking for students who have done well at GCSE and who also fall into one of the groups currently under-represented at the University. In order to be eligible you must meet one or more of the following criteria: - you live in an area where fewer people than average progress on to university - or your parents don t have management or professional jobs - or you are, or have been, a looked-after young person - or you have a disability or specific learning difficulty, such as dyslexia - or you are a refugee or asylum seeker. Other factors we consider are whether: - your parents have attended university in the UK or abroad - you have attended a school that performs below the national average at GCSE - you are from an ethnic group under-represented in higher education - you are a young man or woman under-represented in a particular subject - your family receives a means tested state benefit - you are eligible for a post-16 bursary - you have experienced difficult family or individual circumstances that have affected your performance in exams or the likelihood of progressing to university. 5
We aim to make our events attractive to all under-represented groups and accessible to those with disabilities. This is made clear on our website, publicity material and communications with schools and colleges, and inclusive practice is included in our student ambassador and tutor training. MONITORING ACTIVITIES OFFA and HEFCE require us to submit a Monitoring Statement annually to report on the University s expenditure on widening participation activities and level of activity according to the milestones and output targets agreed in the Access Agreement. Participant characteristics are monitored to assess and demonstrate success in attracting students who fulfil the targeting criteria in the University s Access Agreement, support delivery of OFFA s Strategic Plan 2015-20 and are in key groups with characteristics protected under the Equality Act 2010. This element of evaluation is strongly linked to the strategy for engaging specific schools and participant selection criteria for activities. Monitoring generates useful information on the characteristics of participants in activities that can inform future targeting. EAMPLE: YEAR 12 STEM SUMMER SCHOOL MONITORING DATA LPN NS-SEC PARENTAL EPERIENCE OF HE ACADEMIC ATTAINMENT GENDER ETHNICITY For example, monitoring data for the Social Science Summer School demonstrated that very few young men applied or participated, leading to a review of the content and topic areas, and changes in the content and marketing for subsequent years. 6
Monitoring the ethnicity of participants indicated that that we are able to attract a more diverse group of students through our nationally recruiting Year 12 Summer Schools than through our more locally targetted activities and, this amongst other factors, has resulted in the provision of an additional Year 12 Summer School with alternative activities for local students. CONCLUSION Through a range of outreach and transition activities the WPO seeks to encourage and support potential students from all groups under-represented in higher education in general and at this University in particular. 7
WPO-ACTIVITIES-Equality_Analysis_Report V2_2016.doc 1 Assessment of potential impact on protected groups (see section 1.6(5) Characteristic Good practice identified Risk of adverse impact [Please tick] High Medium Low Age Disability Gender Marriage and civil partnership Pregnancy and maternity Race Religion and belief Sexual orientation Transgender status Comments on the assessments given: Note that only age, disability and gender are currently declared as characteristics in advance of admissions decisions. Ethnicity is provided post-decision. This creates challenges when trying to link outreach activity with the undergraduate admissions process. 8
WPO-ACTIVITIES-Equality_Analysis_Report V2_2016.doc 2 Commentary on good practice identified Have you identified good practice that could benefit other Departments/Faculties? If so, please describe it below. The targeting and monitoring criteria used for WPO-led outreach events could be extended to other departments offering outreach activities. This links with Admissions criteria so could result in positive changes in student diversity. Similarly the Evaluation Framework developed in the WPO could be shared with colleagues to help assess the impact of their work and increase their understanding of the wider cultural issues that affect participation, success and progression (i.e habitus and capitals). The findings from the Student Success Action Research Project (led by the Head of WPO) could be more widely disseminated across the university to mitigate actual or potential adverse impact student groups under-represented at the University most notably BAME students If you identified a risk of adverse impact in Section 4 above, please specify here what action will be taken to mitigate this. For each action, state the timescale for introducing any change to policy or practice, and who is responsible for ensuring this is completed. Action Timescale Responsibility Ensure that gender specific work does not adversely affect transgender students and take measures to mitigate that risk. E.g gender neutral images and activities rather than highly gendered approaches. Ongoing can be incorporated in design of programmes A Hayton and WPO 3 Name of reporter: Annette Hayton, Head of WPO 9