abstract:The widening participation in higher education is a major component of government education policy in the United Kingdom and Europe. It consists of an attempt to increase not only the numbers of young people entering higher education, but also the proportion from so-called "under-represented groups" (those from lower income families, people with disabilities and some ethnic minorities).
Not only that but it could become a condition of universities' being given their main funding that they have submitted strategies for wideningparticipation.
"The release of wideningparticipation funding will continue to depend upon the submission of satisfactory targets, and satisfactory progress towards those targets, " the council says.