1. The value of collaboration
Reaching Out
The value of collaboration
Karina Berzins
Continuum, UEL

2. Collaborative funding
HEFCE established a National Networks for Collaborative Outreach (NNCO) scheme
explicitly aims to encourage more young people into Higher Education
Nationally coordinated approach to work with schools, colleges and HEIs
Scheme involves around 4,300 secondary schools and 200 universities and colleges
£22 million provided by govt. over two academic years
Each network has appointed a single point of contact (SPoC), who:
helps teachers and advisers find out about the outreach activity which universities and colleges run in their area
provides general advice about progression into HE.
To further the widening participation agenda, the HEFCE has established a National Networks for Collaborative Outreach (NNCO) scheme which explicitly aims to encourage more young people into Higher Education. This scheme aims to deliver a nationally coordinated approach to work with schools, colleges and HEIs in setting up Single Points of Contact (SPoC) for teachers and others to find out about outreach activity in their area, as well as providing general advice about progression into HE. The scheme involves around 4,300 secondary schools and 200 universities and colleges in England.

3. Reaching Out Reaching East – UCL and UEL
Reaching London – Greenwich University
Also Two smaller bespoke research projects:
Ravensbourne Reaching Out
Goldsmiths Reaching Out

4. Reaching East geography
Eastern arc of low participation – POLAR data

5. Reaching East
providing an in depth understanding of the delivery and impact of outreach work in the East of London area, through the mapping exercise (year one)
Gaps, needs and capacity analysis (year two)
Culminates in a seminar series
by providing an in depth understanding of the delivery and impact of outreach work in the East of London area, through the mapping exercise. As the Linking London network has a college focus, the mapping will highlight FECs and 6th Forms, but will also consider all types of educational institution. Then, we will build on this phase of the research to conduct a gaps and needs analysis so that outreach activities (ultimately) can be better tailored to the individual circumstances of colleges, schools and learners in this part of London. In this way the activities of the Linking London network will be supported, as well as the activities of other institutions who may be members of other networks, who nonetheless operate in this geographic region. This will assist with the HEFCEs aim of cross-collaboration between the regional networks, and will ultimately assist all learners in the East of London area.

6. What is Outreach?
Delivery by HEIs of activities and events with schools
Campus Visits
Summer schools (or other residential events)
Subject taster days
Application support (including folio work)
Mentoring
Student finance talks
Most activities based around “aspiration raising” and/or raising achievement
by providing an in depth understanding of the delivery and impact of outreach work in the East of London area, through the mapping exercise. As the Linking London network has a college focus, the mapping will highlight FECs and 6th Forms, but will also consider all types of educational institution. Then, we will build on this phase of the research to conduct a gaps and needs analysis so that outreach activities (ultimately) can be better tailored to the individual circumstances of colleges, schools and learners in this part of London. In this way the activities of the Linking London network will be supported, as well as the activities of other institutions who may be members of other networks, who nonetheless operate in this geographic region. This will assist with the HEFCEs aim of cross-collaboration between the regional networks, and will ultimately assist all learners in the East of London area.

7. Reaching London
One year project mapping outreach pan-London

8. Research Aims (Year 1)
To map the type and frequency of outreach activity in the East of London arc of low participation
To establish a database of this activity with useful contact details to be shared with our and other NNCOs
To examine the role of colleges in particular, and to look at FECs as a particular case study as they are (potentially) both providers of outreach, as well as receivers of outreach activity
To examine this activity for patterns which may contribute to rates of participation in a local (borough or ward level) area, including the use of datasets such as IMD data
To establish potential connections between rates of participation, outreach, and destination of young learners

9. Research Aims (Year 2)
To conduct a gap analysis to identify “cold spots” where outreach activities are not provided
To conduct a needs analysis to identify where outreach work could potentially be of benefit
To conduct a capacity analysis to help colleges, schools and other providers deliver more tailored, effective, or simply more outreach activity to benefit learners in East London
To develop a toolkit to facilitate the engagement of colleges and schools with appropriate outreach activity and help schools to develop a way to map their own engagement with outreach work
To deliver four seminar workshops to provide a space where stakeholders can come together to collaborate and act as a “matchmaking service” to further facilitate the provision of outreach activity. These seminar workshops will also be of use for teachers, head teachers and other stakeholder staff members’ CPD

10. Data Sources School survey Collecting data from HEIs
All London HEIs involved
From survey and Access Agreements (Nvivo) identified 35 out of London HEIs who work in London/Essex
Informal collaboration of WP and outreach teams made the mapping possible

11. Findings
Strong positive correlation between amount of outreach and participation in HE from a school at both London level and East London level
Schools want to deliver more and better outreach for their learners
From the survey we have found that nearly 70% of schools have at least one dedicated staff member dealing with the organisation of outreach activities.
It is clear from the survey that the majority of activity is taking place with year 12 and year 13 groups. From the 2266 total events reflected in the survey, 1299 of them were for year 12 and 13 students, representing 57% of all activity.
We asked about increases in outreach activity between the 2013/14 and 2014/5 academic years, and nearly 60% of schools surveyed said that there had been an increase in activity, with a further 32% saying the frequency of activity has remained approximately the same.

12. Findings
Across London and into the Eastern regions there was a total of (at least) 5,693 outreach events during the 2014/15 academic year.
Newham schools participated in the most outreach events (325) and Basildon the fewest (15)
The most popular events were Summer Schools, with 1,789 of these events in 2014/15
Further Education Colleges and Sixth form colleges participated in 1,148 outreach event – here the most popular type of events were HE fairs.

15. FEC outreach

17. Mapping Data HESA data Publically available data
Edubase, school census
Achievement
POLAR3
Outreach data from HEIs

19. Mapping Tool

20. Summary Collaborative funding avoids issues of competition
Existing collaborative structures useful in a large city (Linking London)
Informal collaborations made the project possible (data collection from HEIs)
Tool for London

21. Contact Details Karina Berzins Research Fellow, Continuum, UEL