Outreach and widening participation

We are proud of everyone in our diverse and inclusive University community and work tirelessly to break down barriers to ensure that everyone can benefit from the transformative education we provide. Some 17% of our students come from postcodes with lower participation rates in higher education, and 32% are from the most deprived areas.

Our outreach work with schools

Last year we continued our work with local schools and colleges as part of our commitment to widening participation (WP) amongst those groups typically under-represented in higher education. Despite the challenges raised by COVID-19, we were delighted that almost 3,500 school pupils engaged across 217 BNU events.

28% of the young people we worked with during the year would be firstgeneration university students; about one in three (32%) were members of the BAME community; and 5% identified as disabled. Over half (55%) students lived in areas with low participation to university (POLAR4 Q1 and Q2) and 33% lived in high deprivation areas. In addition, we welcomed students from the Probation Service, Young Carers, 45 children from service families and 77 care-experienced students. Almost a quarter (23%) of students received free school meals.

With the COVID-19 recovery in progress we were able to increase our support to students, delivering more than 1,200 hours of engaging virtual, inperson and blended activities throughout the year, including taster days, careers days and careers advice and guidance sessions across groups from Years 8 to 13. This activity culminated in two summer residential programmes for students interested in sport and young carers. We are committed to playing our part to respond to the increasing emphasis by government and schools on the importance of careers advice and attainment raising. It is important to us to help students in their career choices and illustrate the pathways available to them, whether or not this includes higher education.

Our Futures Days campus visits are aimed at Year 9 students, offering a first-hand experience of university life to encourage them to consider higher education, irrespective of their background. Last year we held 15 Futures Days which were offered to all local schools which meet our WP criteria. For older age groups, we support both their move into further education and their application to higher education, as well as offering parents’ information evenings and HE workshops. We actively seek to recruit Student Ambassadors who attended our target WP schools to provide relatable role models to the school pupils with whom we work.

We have taken forward the lessons of the pandemic and strengthened our new programmes such as the eightweek Fashion Futures initiative where academics in our Fashion course team provided subject-specific widening participation support. We also organised a virtual Q&A session to help parents support their children in transitioning from school to higher education, and supported whole year groups with interview skills and training.

BNU is a partner in Study Higher, part of the National Collaborative Outreach Programme, which targets students from areas where progression to higher education is low. BNU takes part in joint ventures with our partners – Oxford Brookes University, The University of Reading and The University of Oxford. As part of our widening participation work, we invited local school pupils to help us celebrate Black History Month by joining a Q&A session with inspiring Black professionals in our organisation. The pupils asked the panel about actions they could take to combat racism and shared personal experiences.

Over the past five years, including 2021-22, our Student Recruitment, Widening Participation and Outreach teams have actively worked with University Technical College Aylesbury to deliver activities, including campusbased tours and workshops; course tasters in animation and business; virtual CV and personal statement support; and virtual mock interviews with written feedback on careers days.

Celebrating Black History Month

We once again marked Black History Month to celebrate the history of Black people and the immense contribution they and other ethnic minority groups make to our University and the society we live in today. Throughout October 2021, staff and students held and attended a series of events held by the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Staff Network that recognised the positive contributions and achievements of ethnic minority communities. The Network is responsible for raising awareness and promoting opportunities to achieve greater race equality at BNU.

BNU’s Black History Month 2022 featured informal discussions on critical race theory and the social construct of Whiteness, while a new Beyond Black History Month book club was launched and a panel Q&A event for current students was hosted by four established BNU alumni. BNU' Students Union held activities and events including film nights and receptions. Our Network also visited a local school to raise awareness of Black History Month and to discuss the importance of race equality.

BNU continues to make great strides in addressing racial inequalities and creating an inclusive culture and environment where individuals can thrive, irrespective of their race or ethnicity. We have pledged our commitment to the principles of the Advance Higher Education Race Equality Charter (REC) by improving the representation, progression and success of staff and students from different ethnic backgrounds within higher education last year. We are now midway through applying for REC status, having developed a thorough action plan that is guided by the above principles, while playing an important role in addressing racial inequalities in our local communities.