*2.2. Access to Higher Education in the UK*

Similar to Ireland, higher education institutions in the UK developed localised responses to improve their socio-economic diversity, and research demonstrates these interventions were effective [14]. The current progression rate to HE in the UK is 37% [5]. The cost of HE to students was relatively low-cost, similar to Ireland, until 2010, when the then coalition government precipitated substantial changes to the HE funding model, raising the tuition fee limit to GBP 9000, while larger government-funded loans were provided to students taking a first degree. Subsequent policy changes mean that HE maintenance grants are no longer available to students, regardless of their SES. Institutions charging the current GBP 9250 tuition fee tariff are required to produce an access agreement outlining how they will use their additional revenue to support access measures. These are normally set out in an agreement between the Office for Students (OfS) and each institution [15]. This means the UK now has one of the most expensive tuition fee systems in the world for a primary degree and young people can anticipate leaving university with a debt burden of at least GBP 50,000.

Not all universities are created equal, and the policy discourse around access to HE in the UK has shifted in the last decade to a closer consideration of "fair access" for low-SES students to selective higher education institutions. Prestige differences emerged between the "Old" (pre-1992) and "New" (post-1992) universities [16–18]. Graduates of more selective universities are more likely to secure professional and managerial jobs and to earn higher salaries [19,20]. Data show that students from low-SES backgrounds who applied to university in 2020 were four times less likely to go to a highly selective university than students from the most advantaged backgrounds [5].

In 2018, the government established the Office for Students (OfS) as the regulator of higher education in England. It took on responsibility for promoting "fair access" to higher education and ensuring students from all backgrounds are supported to progress and graduate. The OfS introduced Access and Participation Plans (APPs) as a condition for HEIs who wished to charge higher tuition fees. APPs required HEIs to demonstrate the range of on-campus and outreach activities they take to 'widen participation'. HEIs are also encouraged to make use of "contextual data" in their admissions decisions. This process involves considering an individual's socio-economic background and their school performance data, among other things, rather than relying solely on their results in exams and coursework [21]. Contextualised admission varies across countries. Mountford-Zimdars and Sabbagh [22] explain the holistic admissions approach taken in the USA, where each student is considered individually. In the UK and Ireland, on the other hand, the admissions system draws on "indicators" of disadvantage. Four types of indicators are generally used: individual, postal code-level, school-level and participation in widening participation programs [18].

This section has explained the context in Ireland and the UK for low-SES student progression to higher education. The following section outlines the materials and methods used to explore two questions posed in relation to two educational interventions: (a) the admissions adjustments required in both countries to diversify low-SES student intake and (b) the developing capability set of students participating in a community-based educational outreach programme (TA21) and a university-based academic programme (LMH FY).
