Raising aspirations in local schools

In 2015, members of the University’s Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Schools Outreach Group (CAPSOG) worked with 134 primary and secondary schools to give students potentially life-changing educational opportunities both at school and across the University.

CAPSOG’s members include the Department of Engineering, the University’s eight Museums and Botanic Garden, the Cavendish Laboratory, the Millennium Mathematics Project, St Catharine’s College and several other Offices.

The Cambridge Admissions Office’s HE Partnership organised 4,400 student interactions through in-school workshops, visits to Cambridge Colleges and departments, and residential trips to partner universities including East Anglia, Bedfordshire and Nottingham.

The Millennium Mathematics Project’s work included co-ordinating STIMULUS, a programme which sees Cambridge undergraduates supporting local schools with their maths, science and computing lessons. In 2015, STIMULUS created 361 student volunteer placements which led to around 9,000 interactions with local pupils.

Meanwhile, the University of Cambridge’s Museums and Botanic Garden hosted 2,930 students in Post 16 education as well as working with Year 7 and 8 students.

Schools in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough now also have a direct way of developing a relationship with the collegiate University through a dedicated Area Link College, St Catharine’s. In 2015, the College organised events which led to more than 1,500 student interactions.

Matt Diston, CAPSOG’s Widening Participation Project Coordinator said

“This year even more local state schools students have taken part in aspiration-raising events run by the University of Cambridge. The opportunities which CAPSOG members offer range from giving expert advice on applying to Higher Education to doing experiments in world-class laboratories. 

“We would like to encourage even more state schools in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough to get in touch to discuss ways that we can help to inspire, advise and encourage their students as they seek to broaden their horizons and plan their futures."