-----Original Message-----
From: aimhigher [mailto:aimhigher@harrisoncowley.com] 
Sent: 11 November 2005 14:01
To: aimhigher
Subject: Aimhigher Practitioner Bulletin - November 2005

Welcome to the November edition of the Aimhigher practitioner bulletin, designed to provide all those working for Aimhigher with relevant programme news and details of national resources.

If you have comments or suggestions on the content of the practitioner bulletin or website, or any other communications enquiries, please contact the National Communications Resource Team (NCRT) on 0117 929 7096 or email aimhigher@harrisoncowley.com.

Aimhigher funding 2006-08
Since the Ministerial announcement was made on 11 October, representatives of the funding bodies have attended a number of events organised for partnership chairs, managers and coordinators. Feedback from these events suggested that schools needed to be specifically informed about the implications for their budgets as a result of the changes to Aimhigher. The DfES statement is available on the following page on the practitioner website:
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/resource_material/about_aimhigher/funding.cfm 

Aimhigher review: results from consultation exercise
The outcomes from the Aimhigher consultation exercise which took place between 9 May and 27 June are now available and a summary report can be downloaded from the following page of the practitioner website.
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/resource_material/about_aimhigher/future_of_aimhigher.cfm 

The overwhelming majority of respondents supported Aimhigher, and agreed that the programme adds significant value to efforts in raising aspirations and attainment through its unique position in bringing together the different education sectors, community and voluntary groups, employers and training providers to form partnerships that provide links to schools, colleges, HEIs and other education providers. Many people felt that without Aimhigher, these kinds of widening participation activities would be disjointed and would duplicate efforts. 

Respondents supported the proposal that Aimhigher could perform a brokering role in future; people felt that this was already taking place to a great extent already. Partnerships welcomed the suggestion that regions and areas should have a say in deciding the distribution of funding.

In terms of the funding methodology to be used from 2006, respondents expressed a desire for stability of funding over a change to the method of allocating funds to partnerships. The majority of people supported a widening of the programme’s age-related target groups to give greater weight to work with mature and part-time learners, and with work-based and vocational learners more generally, regardless of their age bracket.

There was strong support to retain the existing national, regional and area structures.

Student Finance: campaign update
The DfES launched the student finance campaign on 3 October with a five week burst of television advertising. The beginning of November sees four weeks of radio advertising and adverts on telephone boxes (situated close to colleges) to target potential students. Adverts in women's magazines such as Take A Break and Bella and TV listings magazines such as TV Quick and Radio Times will target parents.
 
As part of the public relations activity, the DfES ran student finance week at the beginning of October, which generated over 90 pieces of positive coverage in press and broadcast media. The DfES also organised two successful webchats, one for parents with Bill Rammell, the Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education, and one for students with Katy Hill, a television and radio presenter. To view a selection of the coverage achieved to date, click on the link below.
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/resource_material/national_campaigns/student_finance/publicity.cfm            

Student Finance: regional events 
The programme of student finance events, organised by DfES in partnership with NASMA and Local Authorities, commenced in early November and will continue until mid-December at venues around the country. A detailed presentation is delivered at these events, aiming to update those advisors who deal with students thinking of going on to higher education from 2006 and onwards. The majority of the events are fully booked, however please visit https://secure.symphonyem.co.uk/studentfinance/ for details of any remaining places or to register on a waiting list.

In addition to the detailed presentation delivered at the regional events, a simple presentation has been developed for advisors as a tool to use when delivering information to students and parents. Click on the link below to download a copy of this PowerPoint presentation.
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/resource_material/national_campaigns/student_finance/resources.cfm 

Evaluation update
A national seminar updating practitioners on the evaluation of Aimhigher was held on 28 October. The seminar, hosted by Action on Access, included an update by HEFCE on the Aimhigher evidence programme. A copy of HEFCE’s presentation is available on the Action on Access website at http://www.actiononaccess.org/events/earchive/28oct05.html. 

HEFCE also outlined the regional and area monitoring and evaluation process. Although Aimhigher is being evaluated at a national level, regions and areas are monitoring the impact of Aimhigher in the short term, medium term and long term and their findings will help to inform future Aimhigher plans for 2006 to 2008. Areas and regions are asked to share their evaluation experiences, tools and findings by sending them to Judie Jancovich at HEFCE on j.jancovich@hefce.ac.uk. 

For further information about the Aimhigher evidence programme, click on the link below.
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/resource_material/monitoring___evaluation/evaluation.cfm 

Action on Access contract announced
Action on Access has recently been re-appointed as the national co-ordination team for widening participation until December 2008. The new team will continue to support Aimhigher through seminars, workshops and publications. In addition, regional advisors will continue to support the work of regional partnerships in planning and delivering Aimhigher activity.  
The central team will be based at Edge Hill College of Higher Education and will be led by Andrew Rawson. There will be two directors: Rhiannon Evans, Director for Students and External Relations at Edge Hill in the North West who will be responsible for the contract, and John Storan, Director of Continuum at the University of East London. Under the new arrangements, the team will also have responsibility for specifically supporting disability issues within widening participation in partnerships and institutions, a task which has been undertaken for the last three years by the National Disability Team. For more information about the work of Action on Access, visit http://www.actiononaccess.org.  

£40 million boost for part-time students
On 4 November HEFCE and the DfES announced an additional £40 million for 2006-07 and 2007-08 to encourage participation and improve provision for part-time students from the most under-represented groups. News of this additional funding comes shortly after Education Secretary Ruth Kelly's announcement on 18 October of an enhanced support package for part-time students. For more information, click on the links below.
http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2005_0133 
http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2005_0117 

Aimhigher communications
HEFCE is currently in the process of evaluating Aimhigher communications and will be asking practitioners to complete a brief survey by email later this month. The current contract for the National Communications Resource Team – provided by Harrison Cowley – will run until the end of February 2006 at which time it will be re-tendered based on the survey results. If you have any feedback on communications to date, or suggestions for future activity, please contact Chris Scrase at HEFCE on 0117 931 7153 or email c.scrase@hefce.ac.uk. 

Roadshow update
Since the launch of the Year 5 tour on 26 September, the Aimhigher roadshow has already visited over 120 schools and colleges from Westminster to Whitby. During this time, the roadshow has been concentrating on reaching FE and sixth form students, in line with the higher education application cycle. To date the roadshow has reached over 8,700 students with the Aimhigher message, as well as answering practical questions about how students can finance themselves through their course.
 
On 21 November, the DfES will launch the schools tour, focusing on putting across aspirational messages about higher education to Year 9 pupils. The 25 weeks spent on the schools tour will take the roadshow to over 600 schools, and by the end of the academic year it is expected to have reached up to 88,000 young people. For more information about the Aimhigher roadshow, click on the link below.
http://www.aimhigher.ac.uk/practitioner/events/roadshow.cfm.