Fair Access and Widening Participation

At Durham we welcome students from all backgrounds. We focus on encouraging everyone who has the merit and potential to succeed to take a look at what Durham has to offer. We are committed to providing the very best education, built on the principles of innovative teaching, a research-led curriculum and a vibrant wider student experience. It’s this combination which we believe helps you to thrive personally, intellectually and professionally and provides you with the skills you need to go out and make a difference in the world. We want to ensure that, regardless of background, every applicant who has the ability and desire to study with us is given this opportunity.

From the work of our Access and Engagement Team in helping to raise aspirations, to the information and advice sessions delivered to pupils in schools and colleges across the country, to providing travel bursaries for our open days and visits, to the contextual offers being led by our Admissions Office, Durham is committed to fair access and widening participation.    

Our new Access and Participation Plan agreed by the Office for Students (OfS) reaffirms our commitment to widening participation in higher education. We are proud to be investing £11.7million in outreach, student success, progression and evaluation activities over the year. The agreement outlines a number of current initiatives - such as offering summer schools and developing partnerships with regional schools and academies - as well as new initiatives aimed at enrolling students from under-represented backgrounds and supporting them while they are here.