Yesterday the ADR Wales Skills and Employability research team joined education leaders, researchers and education policy professionals to present their findings on equality within tertiary education in Wales.
The Wales Centre for Public Policy event, held at Cardiff University’s SPARK building, saw ADR Wales researcher Dr Katy Huxley discuss the findings of a new report that examines equity within the Welsh post-compulsory education sector. The data analysis carried out by the ADR Wales Skills and Employability team indicates which groups are under-represented in tertiary education in Wales.
The report, from the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP) which is based at Cardiff University, was commissioned by the Welsh Government to support Medr, the new Commission for Tertiary Education and Research, which has responsibility for all tertiary education in Wales including a remit to increase equality of access.
The Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP) was asked by the Welsh Government to provide evidence to support Medr as part of its remit to promote equality of opportunity in the tertiary education sector in Wales.
Working with the WCPP, ADR Wales researchers Dr. Katy Huxley and Rhys Davies used linked administrative data, for the first time connecting 2011 Census data in Wales with various education databases to explore which groups are currently under-represented in Welsh tertiary education system.
Their analysis found that those from lower socio-economic backgrounds – measured in a variety of ways – are less likely to progress into post-compulsory education. If they do, they exhibit lower levels of attainment and are more likely to undertake vocational qualifications and work-based learning. They also shared insights from the report relating to groups organised by gender, Special Educational Needs status, disability, ethnicity, and Welsh language ability. Welsh speakers were more likely to progress to Sixth Form or FE and pursue academic qualifications.
Katy Huxley of ADR Wales said in the report, “The data analysis highlights the scale and multi-dimensional nature of disparities in access to tertiary education in Wales. Personal and household characteristics, especially deprivation, still go a long way in determining whether people access tertiary education and, if they do, whether they take more ‘academic’ pathways (Sixth Form and higher education) or more ‘vocational’ pathways (further education and work-based learning).”