Release Date 06 July 2012

The latest report by the Office for Fair Access (OFFA) published this week shows that between 2006/7 and 2010/11 the University of Reading invested almost £3.3 million in bursaries and scholarships for students from lower and other under-represented groups.

The report, which also details the range of outreach work undertaken by universities, records that the University of Reading redistributed 21% of its additional fee income over that period to support access to the University from under-represented sections of society. In 2010-11, over 1,100 Reading students benefitted from associated bursaries.

For students from low income households joining the University of Reading in October 2012, an Access Fund worth over £6 million will provide a suite of financial access packages including fee waivers of up to £3,000 and cash bursaries of up to £1,000 across all programmes.

The Access Fund will create targeted outreach activity aimed at pupils in school year 12, in addition to the outreach work already undertaken by the University with pupils from year 9 upwards. The programmes will include summer schools, campus visits, master classes, mentoring and tutoring with specific schemes designed to promote modern languages and Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects.

Professor Gavin Brooks, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Teaching and Learning said: "The University of Reading is committed to fostering a diverse student body and encouraging academic success for all, regardless of background. These latest figures demonstrate our strong record in working to ensure tuition fees are not a disincentive to enter higher education and we will be further developing this work in years to come. "

Since 2001, the University has increased the proportion of its students from state schools and colleges from 79% to 84%, whilst students studying at the University from low socio-economic classes have increased from 21% to 27%.

ENDS

Further information available from Alex Brannen on 0118 378 8005 / a.brannen@reading.ac.uk. 

Notes to editors:

In 2010-11, when the maximum annual fee chargeable was £3,290

The full report (OFFA publication 2012/05, HEFCE publication 2012/13, Access agreement and widening participation strategic assessment monitoring: outcomes for 2010-11) is available at www.offa.org.uk/publications

From the report: "In 2010-11 we expected that institutions with the furthest to go in securing a diverse student body should spend around 20 per cent of their higher fee income on access measures." The University of Reading invested 21.4% of additional fee income.

In 2012/13, for those students with household incomes under £16,000 there will be fee waivers of £3,000 and a cash bursary of £1,000. For £16,001 - £25,000 household incomes, there will be a fee waiver of £2,000 and a cash bursary of £1,000. The National Scholarship Programme is not available to any student with a household income above £25,000.