Teachers in London are far more likely to expect their pupils to attend university compared with other parts of the UK, according to a new report that looks at the future of widening participation initiatives. 

Three-quarters (75 per cent) of teachers in London expect at least half of the class they last taught to progress to higher education, compared with only 47 per cent in the Midlands, and 45 per cent in the north west and Yorkshire and the north east, reflecting “significant” regional differences in student outcomes and expectations, the report by the UPP Foundation says.

The charity has announced it is launching a major inquiry into participation access gaps, which will establish recommendations to “break down the barriers” to higher education and “improve student outcomes”, as its report notes that the participation gap between students receiving free school meals and those who are not has reached “the highest on record”, at 20.8 per cent. London has the highest participation rate at 61.2 per cent, compared with only 40.8 per cent in the north east.

The report finds that teachers in London are twice as likely to expect all of the pupils from their last class to attend university, at 20 per cent. The next highest scoring region was the east of England at 9 per cent, followed by the south east and south west both at 8 per cent, and the Midlands, north west, Yorkshire and the north east at 4 per cent.

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However, the report finds that there are some aspects of the progression rate gap that “cannot just be explained by geographical differences in attainment”. 

School type also played a significant role, with 75 per cent of teachers at Ofsted “outstanding” schools believing that half or more of their class will progress to higher education, compared with only 35 per cent of teachers at schools rated “requires improvement” or “inadequate”.

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Teachers are most likely to think that pupils being “unlikely to achieve the required grades” was the biggest barrier to university entry, cited by 24 per cent surveyed, followed by higher education being “too academically challenging” at 18 per cent. Some 13 per cent say that their pupils did not want to attend university, while a lack of family financial support (9 per cent) and costly tuition fees (7 per cent) were also cited.

Richard Brabner, executive chair of the UPP Foundation, said that the widening participation agenda is “too important to be put on the back burner”.

Referencing the government’s commitment to “break down barriers to opportunity”, Brabner said: “With universities facing unprecedented financial challenges, we want to fill some of the gaps left by [Labour’s] Opportunity Mission to set out concrete goals and policy recommendations that could help make fair access, widening participation and student success a reality.” 

Despite “public apathy” towards higher education, the report finds that university is still for parents the most appealing post-16 option for their child, with 81 per cent of parents with children under the age of 18 saying they want them to go to university. This comes in spite of 36 per cent believing that tuition fees are too expensive, and 31 per cent holding concerns over the cost of living for students.

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juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com