Impact case study database

The implementation of the ICS and VA was independently evaluated by OfS for its impact and published in a full case study promoting the ICF and VA to other HEIs. The benefits of the ICF and VA have been communicated in the press, online and through professional networks, to policymakers and education practitioners, resulting in significant impact on the way HEIs address the awarding gap.

(i) Improvements in student attainment

The most significant impact for students has been improvements in their results. At KU, where the ICF and VA have been in use for 6 years the degree awarding gap between white and BAME students achieving a first or 2:1 has reduced 18 percentage points (pp), from 29 in 2011/12 to 11 in 2018/19 (over the same period the national average decreased by 3pp, from 16 to 13pp) [R6]. The VA score for BAME graduates changed from 0.72 to 0.96, bringing it very close to the level for all UK students irrespective of ethnicity. Over the last 5 years, 279 BAME students (5.4%) at KU have achieved a 1^st or 2:1 degree that might not have otherwise. Despite the newness of adoption by the 5 partner HEIs, there are significant improvements in VA scores for BAME students [R6]. The independent OfS evaluation concluded that ‘ The project had a positive impact. Early findings show that the degree attainment gap between black and white students has narrowed in three of the partner providers. A fourth partner saw an improvement in BAME VA scores but because white attainment also increased the gap was not reduced.’ [S1]. By clearly demonstrating that the ICF promotes inclusion and helps students to overcome barriers to success, the research has informed the OfS Equality and Diversity objectives for 2018-2022. The ICF was also used in an OfS briefing for the sector as an example of 9 actions for institutional change on inclusion. 10 HEIs have said in their Access and Participation Plans (2019-2020) that they have adopted a version of the KU’s ICF, that draws on its principles, strategies and/or interventions [S2].

(ii) Influence on national policies for equality in HE

The VA scores generated at 6 HEIs have raised policymakers’ awareness of the scale and nature of institutional factors in student success and the need to encourage institutional change to improve inclusivity and maximise social mobility outcomes. In 2016 KU outcomes were cited in parliamentary debates on issues of BAME people in the workplace [S4]. In an interview for The Guardian in 2017, Les Ebdon, former Director of the Office for Fair Access, pointed to Kingston’s efforts as exemplary and stated: ‘Kingston University has made closing the BAME attainment gap a matter of institutional strategy and measures the vice-chancellor’s performance on that basis.’ The influence of KU’s research on national policy is evidenced by McDuff’s appointment to the ministerial Social Mobility Advisory Group (2015-16) and briefing to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on HE on diversity. Ministerial visits to KU and endorsements in the media have further raised awareness and promoted the ICF. For example, speaking on Channel 4 News in 2019, Nadhim Zahawi, former children and families minister, praised KU’s support for students from care, saying ‘ I went to visit Kingston University and they have two dedicated staff to work with care leavers at university. Why? Because when children get to university, it's a lonely place, it's a difficult place’ [S5]. KU retains 100% of students from care compared to a national average of 70%. Soon after, Chris Skidmore, UK’s universities and science minister wrote in the Times Higher Education (and on Twitter): ‘ Kingston University is leading the way through its KU Cares team in supporting students who have been in care throughout their time at university and beyond’ [S6] .

(iii) Improvements in inclusive teaching and learning that centres on student engagement and co-creation of curricula

Research outputs from the ICF are incorporated into a chapter in a leading textbook ( A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, fifth edition) reaching an international audience of academic practitioners. The ICF and VA tools and resources are freely available via KU’s ICF webpages and promoted via YouTube, leading to shared learning with 7 universities through the European Association of Universities and 5 universities in Europe, Indonesia, and the USA through the International Network of Universities. The VA has been adopted by HEIs beyond the five partner HEIs including: Queen Mary University of London, Southampton Solent and London Metropolitan University. As the former CE of the Higher Education Academy explains: ‘I believed that these tools should be disseminated more widely across the sector and I provided £25k for a project to spread this learning to the University of Wolverhampton and the University of Hertfordshire. This demonstrated the transferability and value of these approaches’ [S7] . The National Educational Opportunities Network’s (NEON) with 126 member HEIs gave KU a commendation for widening access in 2020 [S8]. At a KU 2019 conference to showcase the ICF and VA, 84% of participants (136 people from 55 HEIs) said they were “likely” or “very likely” to adopt the VA metric. As one participant said: ‘The VA metric provides the evidence for HEIs to ‘see’ the problems of inequality within their own institutions and the value of data as a driver for engagement and change when staff are reluctant to talk about race’. Evidence on translation of the VA and ICF to 5 other universities, has demonstrated how HEIs can develop their own approaches to inclusive curricula and institutional change. The impact on practice across the 5 HEIs has been: over 60 projects and practical changes to the curriculum, changes to student services, 39 new institutional policies/policy documents, commitment to use and incorporate the VA and ICF into future planning, monitoring, guidance, evaluation, training, and review [R6].

(iv) Better staff and student awareness of awarding gaps and attitudes towards inclusive practices

In 2017 KU won The Guardian Award for teaching excellence because of its evidence-based approach to inclusive teaching and learning. At KU, the impact of the research extends across the entire institution [R6]. The partner HEIs also show substantial evidence of improvements in staff awareness of awarding gaps and attitudes towards inclusive practices. The independent evaluation funded by the OfS says of the VA metric that ‘ Value-added data at this level has proved a very powerful means of engaging staff in discussion around the attainment gap’ [S9]. In interviews with academic staff in the partner institutions, staff have described the VA and ICF as ‘ sophisticated and visually powerful’ (Wolverhampton), ‘ a game changer because it challenges the student deficit model’ (Hertfordshire), ‘ practical, understandable tools which help staff to recognise the problem and offered them some ways to respond’ (De Montfort) [R6]. Through webinars and conferences organised by KU’s Special Interest Group on Inclusion and Social Justice, staff and students are supported to discuss sensitive and complex equality issues. Student participants in the “Fighting for Our Rights” project, one of the key inclusive curriculum projects, gave overwhelmingly positive responses about the move towards inclusive education, which has also raised awareness in schools through a co-created Disability Awareness Resource. All partner HEIs have developed case studies of working with ICCs/students to change curricula, broaden reading lists, improve assessment, and promote student interaction. The positive impact on student engagement is illustrated by the YouTube ICC video [S10]. As a former Senior ICC at KU, explains: ‘ The inclusive curriculum framework gave the university and me the accessible tools we needed to implement change. It made difficult conversations possible, but more importantly, it improved the experience of our students.’ [S11]