The University of Exeter finalist in the UK Social Mobility Awards for University of the Year

University of Exeter staff have been recognised for their sustained commitment to promoting social mobility to enable people from all backgrounds to thrive.

Exeter has been named a finalist in the UK Social Mobility Awards, for “University of the Year” because of this sustained work within the region and university community to address barriers to equal opportunity. This includes work within the South West, to widen participation in higher education, make teaching more inclusive and build a diverse staff and student community.

Nicola Sinclair, Head of Access, Participation and Outreach, said: “I’m delighted the University of Exeter has once again been recognised by the UK Social Mobility Awards. This acknowledges our ongoing commitment to use education and research to advance equal opportunity and build a diverse and inclusive academic community where everyone can realise their potential.”

Professor Tim Quine, Vice-President and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education and Student Experience), said: “At Exeter, we believe that universities must play an active role in creating a fairer future. This recognition is a strong endorsement of our long-standing commitment to opening up opportunity and supporting success for all our learners. It reflects the dedication of colleagues across our community who work tirelessly to remove barriers, foster inclusion and ensure that talent, not background, shapes a student’s future.”

The nomination recognises the University’s collaboration with partners to help drive positive change across the South West such as Exeter’s leadership of the South West Social Mobility Commission, work within Civic Agreements to improve outcomes for young people, and the development of skills and qualification pathways to improve employment opportunities. Research by the University’s Centre for Social Mobility has helped to identify the barriers and challenges to social mobility to inform local and national policy.

The University works extensively within and outside the region to promote equality through education, supporting around 1,500 learners each year from Year 10 upwards – including those returning to learning – in programmes to develop educational skills, inform choices and encourage progression into undergraduate study. These include award-winning schemes such as Exeter Scholars and the Mature Access Pathway, run collaboratively with further education colleges. University of Exeter staff and students work with pupils across the South West through school and campus-based activities including advice sessions, subject conferences and student-led tutoring, supporting many thousands of local learners each year.

The University’s Success for All initiative is a comprehensive programme to build a diverse and inclusive educational environment. Examples of recent activities include collaboration with disabled students to make teaching and assessment more accessible; wide ranging cost of living mitigations to help students overcome financial barriers and schemes such as Exeter Cares providing pastoral and practical help for students who may need additional support due to challenging personal circumstances such as being in care, family estrangement or having caring responsibilities. Initiatives like these have contributed to the growth of students from under-represented backgrounds studying at Exeter, while supporting them to achieve excellent academic and graduate outcomes.

Work to achieve quality marks such as the Race Equality and Mental Health Charters has supported continuous improvements in policies and practice to support the inclusion and wellbeing of students and staff. Commitment to schemes such as 100 Women Black Professors Now have helped improve the representation of staff from minority groups in senior positions.