1 Introduction
This summary report presents findings from the ongoing formative evaluation of Phase Two of Uni Connect , focusing on the programme ’ s outreach hubs . The full report can be found on the OfS website .
Uni Connect offers events , impartial advice and information on higher education ( HE ) to young people in Years 9 to 13 . The programme is led by the OfS and delivered by 29 partnerships of universities , colleges and other local partners across England . It aims to support access and participation in HE through multi-agency collaborative work . Key features of the programme are its highly collaborative nature and sustained and progressive approach to supporting young people . There have been two phases to the programme :
▪ Phase One : January 2017 to July 2019 – involved delivery of targeted outreach focussed on 997 specific wards in England where HE participation was lower than might be expected given the GCSE results of the young people who lived there .
▪ Phase Two : August 2019 to July 2021 – an additional strand , outreach hubs , was added to the ongoing Phase One activity . Each region in England is covered by a hub .
Outreach hubs were developed based on feedback from Uni Connect partnerships and local stakeholders about the need to support underrepresented learners in schools and colleges outside those located in Uni Connect targeted outreach wards . Uni Connect partnerships have the flexibility to deliver outreach activity through the hubs based on local need so that a range of local contexts can be accommodated .
Overview of the evaluation At the time of the data collection for this formative evaluation ( June 2020 to March 2021 ), the outreach hubs continued to develop both conceptually and operationally . Funding decisions on the programme were pending , as was new guidance for the operation of the hubs , and the COVID-19 pandemic was ongoing . 1 These internal and external factors impacted both on how the remit of outreach hubs was perceived and their implementation , and , in turn , on how the findings of this report should be interpreted .
This report focuses on how the hubs are developing and learnings to support and enhance their ongoing delivery , rather than the impacts of the programme . It is based on :
▪ a desk review of Uni Connect programme documentation
▪ nine scoping consultations with Uni Connect staff and the Department for Education ( DfE )
▪ 29 interviews with partnership leads conducted by the OfS in June 2019
▪ a light-touch review of programme monitoring and evaluation data provided by partnerships in their summer 2020 and winter 2020 returns to the OfS
▪ 40 in-depth interviews conducted between October and November 2020 , of which 29 with partnership leads and 11 with stakeholders who have been working closely with partnerships2
▪ a workshop with 28 partnership leads / representatives .
1
At the time of the report , the targeted outreach element of Uni Connect had been confirmed until 31 July 2021 , whilst funding for the outreach hubs has been agreed in principle until 2024-25 ( in line with the current cycle of Access and Participation Plans ).
2
The wider stakeholder interviews included delivery organisations and strategic partners , such as career guidance services , local authorities , employers , LEPs , local careers hubs , careers leaders and opportunity areas .
3