Championing progression to higher education for care leavers
Throughout November, National Care Leavers Month, LJMU is championing its role in supporting care experienced students to thrive in higher education.
Support for care experienced students at LJMU
In 2022, LJMU was awarded the National Network for the Education of Care Leavers (NNECL) Quality Mark in recognition of the enhanced level of support on offer, and this Quality Mark was renewed earlier this year.
The university offers a wide range of support to care experienced students throughout their time at LJMU, from year-round accommodation to annual bursaries and a dedicated point of contact through the Student Advice and Wellbeing team.
Philip Bakstad, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, recently authored a blog for the Higher Education Policy Institute outlining how a ‘Guarantor Waiver’ scheme with accommodation providers in the city means that LJMU students don’t face barriers in securing accommodation.
LJMU also supports students beyond university, providing individualised advice and guidance to final year students helping to bridge the gap as statutory help comes to an end.
This summer, thanks to a donation from Honorary Fellow and alumni Gary Millar, six graduating students were awarded £1,500 each to help them as they transitioned into the world of work. And last month current LJMU Law student Jeeya, who has lived experience of care and estranged backgrounds, started a 12-month internship with our Student Futures team to support the development of services, opportunities and resources that will enable the university to enhance their support to students at the conclusion of their studies, helping them navigate the ‘care cliff edge’ and embark upon successful early careers.
Working with schools to widen access to HE for care experienced children
LJMU also works closely with schools and local authorities to provide activities, including taster sessions and summer schools, which enable care experienced children to understand what university is like and to discover potential pathways into future study.
More than 100 care experienced pupils from 15 schools across the North West, aged between 14 and 16, visited the university in November for a day of bespoke activities designed to inspire and engage them in the possibility of higher education, offering reassurance of the support on offer from pre-application to beyond graduation.
Engaging staff in continuous improvement and training
During November, the university also offered two dedicated training events as part of its annual staff development calendar.
Expertise from the School of Education was shared during a Teaching Insights Seminar, organised by the university’s Teaching and Learning Academy, with a focus on exploring the significant role that educators play in supporting care experienced students.
A separate session organised by the Diversity and Inclusion team explored the challenges that care experienced and estranged students may face in HE, the unique strengths that these students have, and practical ways to enable staff to most appropriately support them throughout their studies.
Access and Participation Plan
Care experienced and estranged students remain two of the most under-represented groups in HE, and the Office for Students has identified them as a priority group for inclusion in institutional Access and Participation Plans with specific targets related to access, participation and success.
Find out more about LJMU’s Access and Participation Plan.
