Unlocking lockdown: Practical approaches to moving university outreach forwards. This event is no longer live, however, all recordings are available to view here.
Study Higher annual access conference: Working with further education colleges and adult learners.
Friday 8 October 2021
(This conference was delivered virtually)
Following the publication of the government’s white paper, ‘Skills for Jobs: Lifelong Learning for Opportunity and Growth’, and the subsequent ‘Skills and Post-16 Education Bill’ outlining a lifetime skills guarantee, we considered how access and participation work supports different learner journeys into and through further and higher education.
Study Higher’s 4th annual conference aimed to offer a platform to share research and widening participation practice with adult learners, learners studying in further education settings, and/or effective collaborations between FE and HE.
All the session links are provided in the main agenda listings and again in the workstream sections below:
AGENDA
Welcome
Professor Gavin Brooks
Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Buckinghamshire New University
Chris Millward
Director for Fair Access and Participation at the Office for Students
Sally Dicketts
Chief Executive of Activate Learning
Workstream 1: Uni Connect and FEC collaboration
“Collaboration with FE colleges”
Kirsty Sanderson-Outreach Officer, Go Higher West Yorkshire
“Case study of how Cirencester College have worked with Uni Connect and what has been most effective”
Dr Jane Fern – Strategic Development Manager and Mike Cadman- Head of Pastoral, Cirencester College
Workstream 2: Adult learner insights and support
“What does an analysis of the Uni Connect Annual Survey 2020 tell us about the future plans and attitudes towards higher education of adult learners in East Anglia?”
Rebecca Middleton – Data and Evaluation Analyst, Network for East Anglian Collaborative Outreach (neaco) – University of Cambridge
“FEC access partnerships to support adults into HE”
Gemma Standen – Widening Participation Officer for mature students, UEA
Workstream 3: Supporting FE students with additional needs
“Supporting ESOL students at FE colleges”
Emma Semi – Aspire Higher Project Officer, University of Bedfordshire
“Transitioning students effectively: a student-led approach to mental health support”
Zoe Mills – Project Manager, University of Lincoln
Workstream 4: Supporting adult learners in community and FECs
“Realising opportunities; sustainable approaches to supporting adult progression”
Olivia Garvey – Development Officer, Lifelong Learning Centre, University of Leeds
“The Jumpstart taster course, an example of university supporting adult learners.”
Fiona Chapel – Development Officer, Lifelong Learning Centre, University of Leeds
Andy Forbes
Afternoon session including adult learner panel recording
HE and FE Practitioner, former head of three colleges: Hertford Regional, College of North East London and City & Islington College
Adult learner panel
Chair: Andy Forbes (as above)
Panelists: Sobia Afridi, Access Officer, Oxford Brookes University
Rosie Wainwright: Winner of ‘Outstanding Individual Award’ at the Festival of Learning 2021
Diana Omokore: Winner of ‘Outstanding Individual Award’ at the Festival of Learning 2019
Sue Funge: Curriculum Manager, Oxfordshire Adult Learning