Widening Access and Participation

The UK has implemented explicit policies of not just increasing but widening participation in higher education for the past fifteen plus years. This work has developed to become increasingly sophisticated, moving from one off interventions to integrated programmes and embedded approaches. This has been informed by research and evaluation, which is applied to policy and practice at national, institutional and partnership level.
We can offer services to review and develop your widening access and participation work at the strategic and practical levels, particularly in relation to:

Institutional strategic approach
Targeting specific groups of under-represented learners
Monitoring and evaluation

Bowes, L., Thomas, L., Peck, L., Moreton, R. and Birkin, G. (2013) The uses and impact of access agreements and associated spend. Bristol: OFFA

Bowes, L., Jones, S., Thomas, L., Moreton, R., Birkin, G. and Nathwani, T. (2012) The Uses and Impact of HEFCE Funding for Widening Participation. Bristol: HEFCE

Stephen Gorard, Nick Adnett, Helen May, Kim Slack and Emma Smith (2007) Review of widening participation research: addressing the barriers to participation in higher education (working title), Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books

Thomas, L. and Quinn, J. (2006) First Generation Entrants in Higher Education: An international analysis (with Jocey Quinn). Maidenhead: Society for Research in Higher Education and Open University Press

Thomas, L. (2005) Widening Participation in post-compulsory education. Second Edition London and New York: Continuum

Thomas, L., Storan, J., Wylie, V., Berzins, K., Harley, P, Linley, R. and Rawson, A. (2010) Review of widening participation strategic assessments 2009. Ormskirk: Action on Access

Thomas, L. and Jones, R. (2007) Ten year review of the Sutton Trust summer schools. London: Sutton Trust.

Thomas, L. et al (2005) From the margins to the mainstream: embedding widening participation in higher education. London: Universities UK

2012 Teachers as advocates for widening participation, Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning, vol. 14, no. 2, pp40-58 (with Derek Bland and Vicky Duckworth)

1. 2011 “Do pre-entry interventions such as ‘Aimhigher’ impact on student retention and success?” A review of the literature, Higher Education Quarterly. vol. 65. No. 3, p230-250

2. 2005 The 2003 UK Government Higher Education White Paper: A critical assessment of its implications for the access and widening participation agenda‘ Journal of Education Policy, 20(5), pp615-630, with Rob Jones

3. 2001 ‘Power, Assumptions and Prescriptions: A critique of widening participation policy-making’ in Higher Education Policy, vol.14, issue 4, pp361-376

4. 2002 Collaboration to Widen Participation (editor, with Michael Cooper and Jocey Quinn). Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books