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See events across the Widening Access & Participation Sector

Please get in touch if you have an event your organisation would like to be promoted on scapp@stir.ac.uk

SCAPP Conference Tues 27 May 2025

Shaping the Future of Access and Participation: Sharing Knowledge, Valuing Impact

We are delighted to open our call for session proposals for the forthcoming SCAPP Conference at Glasgow Caledonian University on Tues 27th May 2025!

We are looking for suggestions for presentations, workshops, poster submissions (or other formats) which showcase what we value, what we do and what we know and understand in the widening access and participation sector.

 

We want practitioners attending to have the opportunity to:

  • broaden understanding of the breadth and depth of work being done nationally to support underrepresented groups to access and succeed in HE
  • know about research findings which can improve practice
  • deepen awareness of the policy drivers and current statistics

 

Think you can contribute? Then submit your proposal by close on Fri 7th March 2025. Find out more and/or complete the submission form here.

 

If you have any questions, please get in touch: scapp@stir.ac.uk

Skills Development Scotland

Profiling Achievements Webinars

Find out about the new national approach to profiling achievements of young people across Scotland. Skills Development Scotland and Education Scotland are co-hosting a series of webinars to highlight the new digital profile feature on My World of Work, which will be available from the end of January.

Register for a session below:

New Resource

Shaping futures: how to use Labour Market Information to support career planning is a new web area on the SDS Corporate website to support influencers, advisers and educators with their work.

FOCUS West Call for Poster Submissions

FOCUS West Teacher Conference
Wed 4th June 2025
Wolfson Medical Building, University of Glasgow

Do you have a particular project/ impact of widening access/ participation programme that you would like to promote to secondary teachers from schools that FOCUS West work with? If so then please consider submitting a poster to showcase this at the above event.

Poster-accompanying staff can arrange with FOCUS West to either set up their own poster on the day of the event or deliver it to FOCUS West in advance.

Poster Guidance

  •  Paper size A0 (841mm x 1189mm)
  • Strong visuals/ colours can make a big difference in getting the poster noticed
  • These types of posters can be re-used for other events and hopefully become more cost-effective over time
  • A strong material for the poster is therefore recommended too

Please submit your expression of interest to veronica.renton@strath.ac.uk by Fri 28th Feb 2025.

Carers Support Payment Education Event

Tuesday 4 March, 11 – 12 Online

Social Security Scotland is hosting an online event to share information on the financial support available for carers in education. Many student carers are not aware that they may be eligible for financial support. Find out more here.

This free event, hosted via MS Teams, may be of particular interest to colleagues working in further and higher education and who provide advice and support to student carers.

The session will cover Carer Support Payment (which is replacing Carer’s Allowance in Scotland delivered by DWP).

The eligibility for this payment was extended last year to include many carers in education. This includes all part-time students, full-time students aged 20 or over and students under 20 who are in advanced or higher education.

The event will include the following information:

  • What is Carer Support Payment?
  • Eligibility for carers in education
  • Supporting information required for applications
  • Backdating claims
  • Young Carer Grant and interactions with Carer Support Payment

This session will aim to make clear the eligibility and backdating rules associated with this payment to support organisations who assist carers in education. There will also be opportunities for questions.

You can book your place by visiting the following link:

Carer Support Payment Education Event

If you have any questions or difficulty booking a place, then please contact the Partnership and Events Team at:

stakeholderengagement@socialsecurity.gov.scot.

SFYEN Online Workshop

When first year is third year – supporting college-to-university students in Scotland’s tertiary sector
(Online workshop, Wed 5 March from 1-3pm)

Dr Claire Mackie is running this free online workshop for the Scottish First Year Experience Network based on her research into the experience of college students joining UWS. Find out more and sign up here.

Applying for Sanctuary Scholarships

 

Please share this opportunity within your own networks. Interested individuals can sign up for free by clicking this link. What will the session cover?

An introduction to university scholarships and how to apply including:

  • An overview of Sanctuary Scholarships and student finance
  • How to apply for university scholarships
  • Key tips for your scholarship application from displaced students & graduates
  • Insights from university staff who administer scholarships

New Estranged Students Working Group – A Call to Action

The LEAPS team have become increasingly concerned about the many gaps in provision for students who are estranged from both parents and who are trying to apply to, or survive within, higher education. With the folding of Standalone, a campaigning group that was set up to support this cohort, we have been worried that good work that was being done, may fall by the wayside. So, we are looking for some WP pals to join us in a WORKING group to try to help estranged pupils and students.

The emphasis on this being a WORKING group is deliberate as we want to try to come together to do the practical graft needed to even the landscape for these students.  Some objectives could be:

  1. To work with high schools to pilot a process for supporting senior phase students who are estranged both in school, and at local authority level.
  2. To work with UCAS to refine the way estranged students identify themselves on their university application.
  3. To get these students their own tag on school systems like SEEMiS.
  4. To try to unpick the issues with university guarantor schemes.
  5. To work with SAAS to improve the financial package available for estranged students.

And that’s just for starters!

We would really like national representation on the group so that we can understand what needs to be done across the country and make sure the good practice that we develop can be nationally applied.

If you are interested in attending an initial meeting on TEAMS on Thursday 13th March at 3.00pm – 4.30pm, please email alison.train@ed.ac.uk 

If you can’t make the first meeting but are still interested, then please get in touch. I am sure this will be a longish road and there will be other meetings to attend and work to do.

SCQF School Ambassador Networking Event

Wed 26 March, 10 – 2, Glasgow

Open to all teachers in secondary schools across Scotland, please share widely. The event will focus on amplifying pupil ambassadors’ voices and leadership skills within our very successful SCQF School Ambassador Programme and showcase more qualifications on the SCQF.

Register for free here.

Foundations of Trauma-Informed and Relationship-Based Practice Course

 

Staf is excited to announce the launch of the Foundations of Trauma-Informed and Relationship-Based Practice Course, developed by Staf in partnership with Open University Scotland. This course aims to support professionals in developing a deeper understanding of trauma-informed approaches and relationship-based practice.

We invite you to join us for the official launch event in Edinburgh on March 31st, where you can learn more about the course, its objectives, and the positive impact it can have on your work.

Event Details:

Date: March 31st, 2024
Time: 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Location: Apex Grassmarket Hotel, 31-35 Grassmarket, Edinburgh EH1 2HS

Whether you’re new to trauma-informed practice or looking to expand your knowledge, this course offers valuable insights and skills.

If you’re interested in attending, please click here to secure your place.

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to host "Let's Talk About..." Symposium 

Tues 1 April 2025, 9am – 4.45pm

You are invited to join the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s first-ever symposium exploring ways of working with care experienced and estranged artists, students and participants.

The symposium will share the projects, practices and research that informs RCS Fair Access approach. They invite you to participate in active conversation and explore best practice in this field.

Click here to visit the Symposium webpage
Click here to register your place.

Transforming Access and Student Outcomes (TASO)

TASO Annual Conference: How to Evaluate

29-30 April, University of Warwick

Find out more and sign up here.

European Access Network Conference

University of Galway
Tues 10 -Wed 11 June 2025

Registration information and what to expect in Galway is available on the Conference Website.