Who are you supporting and why?
Who to support?
Many institutions currently provide financial bursaries to students who meet the statutory definition of a care leaver. However, increasing numbers of institutions are extending their financial support to include others with care experience who do not meet the statutory definition. In many cases, those who fall outside the ‘former relevant’ category and do not receive statutory support, are most in need.
Universities and colleges often develop their own definitions of care experience or eligibility criteria for who can receive support. These may vary widely; some will support any student who has been in care for 3 months or more at any point in their lives whilst others will support Former Relevant Children and those who have been under a Special Guardianship order. You can get an idea of other institutions' offers by browsing on the Propel website which provides details of lots of universities' and colleges' support offers.
It is useful to have an idea of how many care leavers and other care experienced students you have at your institution. This will help to determine your capacity for support and to work out what your eligibility criteria might be. As you might expect, the number of care experienced students varies considerably between institutions, which understandably often influences how, and which, students are supported.
Once you’ve identified your care experienced students, the next step steps are to: contact them; identify how and if they meet your eligibility criteria; and tell them about the package of support you have available.
Packages of support vary between institutions and can depend on capacity, budget and strategic support. In 2021 the Office for Students published a NNECL feasibility study which identified some of the key areas of support being offered by growing numbers of HE providers:
Other practical suggestions
Welcome meetings: arrange one-to-one support meetings at the start of term. It can be useful to use the bursary or scholarship as an incentive for the meeting; however, ultimately it’s about building rapport and checking that everything is ok.
Welcome packs: provide a welcome card, pack or voucher as students move into their accommodation.
Belonging: consider actions that support a sense of belonging: e.g. providing birthday and Christmas cards, ensuring invitations to events across campus are issued, offering drop-in coffee and a chat sessions etc.
Be there: take the time to listen and be a student’s advocate as and when needed.
Buddy or Mentoring scheme: offer guaranteed places to care experienced students on any existing schemes, or set up a scheme for current care experienced students to mentor incoming students.
Signposting: know the range of student services available and who to refer students to for support, when needed. Build up a network of key contacts across the institution.
Communication: continue to communicate throughout students' courses, even if you don’t get anything back. In some cases, students don’t come forward for support until their second or third year.
Support with moving in or out: can you offer practical help in moving into or out of student accommodation? Moving house can be overwhelming for anyone, never mind for those without family support. Remember care experienced students are often bringing all of their worldly belongings with them.
Student Ambassadors: invite care experienced students to become student reps or ambassadors to help immerse themselves in student life and develop life skills that could help their employability at the end of their studies.
Disclosure agreements: if possible, set up an agreement with the student to identify who can be informed of their circumstances and to ensure confidentiality. Disability support teams are usually well-practised in this area and may have an agreement template you could adapt.
Data sharing agreements: consider whether agreements can be put in place between your institution, students and local authorities to share vital information including attendance, support and progression.
Life after university: support care experienced students in planning ahead and setting goals. You may want to run some specific events to help with transition post-university.
Graduation: attend your students' graduation to celebrate with them. Some institutions provide financial support for gown hire, photographs and travel costs.
Hints and tips
Be alert and sensitive to the potential difficulties care experienced students may face. These may often be similar to those of other students, but care experienced students
may not have a network of support. Always try to work with student towards the outcomes they desire.
Ensure that students are aware of the support available to them throughout their studies, but without applying pressure to utilise the services.
Contact students at relevant points during the year to remind them of the support available,
Arrange face to face appointments before financial awards are released so the student has a known person they can go back to should they encounter any difficulties.
Make sure a private space is available so students can speak openly in confidence. This should ideally be with the same person to help develop rapport and open communication channels.
Take the time to address issues and act as an advocate, where necessary, to alleviate students' concerns at having to tell their story to lots of different people.
Develop strong relationships between the ranges of student services as they are essential to enable onward referral when necessary.
Don’t make assumptions.
