Understanding the higher education experiences of care-experienced young people in Wales: Towards a model of best practice

This fellowship will closely investigate the experiences of care-experienced young people in accessing Higher Education (HE). As a result of the 2016 Diamond Review, care leavers were specifically recognised as a group under-represented in HE, and recommendations were put forward that care-experienced young people should be considered as one of the three groups eligible for additional support, both financial and personal (Welsh Government, 2016).

Additionally, following the Higher Education (Wales) Act 2015, HEFCW established a requirement that HEIs promote 'Equality of opportunity to support groups under-represented in higher education; (including care-experienced young people), through attraction and retention of such groups alongside raising aspirations and tailored support (HEFCW, 2018).

This has, in turn, led to HEIs increasing their focus on such support, yet there has been little research into the success or otherwise of such interventions. With this in mind, the primary aim of this research is to understand what Welsh HEIs are doing to improve access to, and success in, HE for care leavers, and to assess the effectiveness of these activities in order to produce a model of best practice.