Aspire to HE
The Gateway at The George
Stafford Street
Wolverhampton
WV1 1LY
We work closely with schools and colleges in the Black Country, and Telford and Wrekin, to provide impartial guidance and practical support to help students make an informed and ambitious decision about higher education and their future.
Aspire to HE works with you to help your pupils access a range activities that will support increased attainment, and explore opportunities available to them through higher education.
Our brand new resources section allows teachers to access our full knowledge curriculum for Year 9 -13 students, plus a wide range of really useful downloads.
We will continue to review and develop these resources to ensure all information is relevant and up to date.
Your questions answered
Aspire to HE is a partnership of schools and colleges, led by the University of Wolverhampton and part of the national Uni Connect programme funded by the Office for Students. The main aim of the partnership is to support the government’s goal to increase the number of young people from less advantaged backgrounds entering higher education.
We bring information on the region’s higher education outreach into one place, and act as a single point of contact to help you make the most of the support available. This includes a wide range of activities and resources for students, teachers, careers advisors, parents and carers.
Aspire to HE currently has 38 partner secondary schools, which we have been working with since 2017. If your school is interested in working with Aspire to HE but doesn’t at the moment, it may still be possible.
Aspire to HE is currently establishing an Outreach Hub and will be looking to increase our provision over the next academic year, this will allow us to work with schools that do not fall under our current target criteria.
You can get in touch with the Aspire to HE team here, to find out if we can arrange a visit for you.
The University of Wolverhampton UK Recruitment and Partnerships team are dedicated to connecting with and supporting schools and colleges across the Midlands region in delivering a programme of activities both on and off campus.
Click here to find out more about what they do and join their teachers and advisers mailing list.
The Gatsby Benchmarks are a framework of 8 guidelines that define the best careers provision in secondary schools.
As part of the second phase of the Aspire to HE programme (which launched in August 2019) Aspire to HE is now developing an Outreach Hub to support all schools and colleges in the Black Country, and Telford and Wrekin to access higher education outreach activities available in the region, and provide a platform for wider collaboration between the University of Wolverhampton and our further education college partners.
Support for you
Teachers and careers professionals play a vital role in school to support ambitious progression and increased social mobility for their learners. This is especially true for those working with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, who may not have access to additional tutoring, extra-curricular activities, and the social capital available to their more affluent peers.
Aspire to HE provides teachers and careers advisers with the opportunity to access CPD events and training, alongside resources for their learners. We recognise that it is the teachers and staff in school who know their learners best, and we offer support to teachers and advisors who are planning aspiration raising events in their school or college.
Aspire to HE has for many pupils at Wood Green Academy broadened their horizons. The initiative has enabled students to attend relevant Open Days, exciting faculty projects, listen to inspiring guest speakers and have expert mentoring. This has given students a strong insight into higher education opportunities and career pathways, and created a stronger desire to follow them.
Mr Mahroof
Wood Green Academy
One Charlton School Alumni stated that because of Aspire to HE, she ‘changed her mind-set and goals’ in secondary school, so that she could be the first person in her family to go onto university. It is testament to our partnership with Aspire that has potentially changed the lives of some of our students.
Mr Best
Charlton School
Students have been taking part in numerous educational visits to museums, sporting events, STEM lectures, motivational workshops, university visits, and summer schools. We have also been lucky to have an Aspire to HE Engagement Officer in two of our schools, and through their mentoring our students have had support in looking at their own aspirations and future plans.
Ms Turton
Dudley Academies Trust
