University shortlisted for prestigious THE Award

Manchester Met has been shortlisted for a Times Higher Education Award in recognition of its excellence in working with our students to support the community.

The prestigious higher education sector awards have shortlisted the University for the Outstanding Contribution to the Local Community prize.

The shortlisted Children Without Limits project sees pupils from teacher training, science and engineering, early years and social work courses deliver extra lessons to primary school children and is led by Andrew Lenehan, Student Enrichment Manager in the Faculty of Health and Education.

The awards recognise the standout achievements of universities and staff across the UK and Ireland in 20 categories, for the academic year 2022 to 2023.

To be shortlisted is a big honour for universities with hundreds of entries submitted each year. Manchester met will now battle it out to be crowned winner at the awards ceremony in Birmingham on November 28.

Andrew said: “We’re thrilled to have been shortlisted for our project working across the community to deliver extra maths, science and English sessions. It is testament to the hard work and dedication of our students and colleagues, and the project reinforces our roots in supporting our local community and schools.

“We’re excited for the awards and hope we can go one step further and win. Many thanks to all involved in the project and awards submission.”

Children Without Limits is an innovative programme that harnesses one of our greatest assets – our students – to narrow educational attainment gaps in our community. The scheme is the only university-run fully operational Saturday school in the country.

Led by the Faculty of Health and Education in partnership with The Faculty of Science and Engineering, 500 children are taught inspirational lessons in maths, science and English each week by Manchester Met students.

During the 2022 to 2023 academic year, 122 students from various degree courses delivered additional lessons to children aged 6-10 from 12 local primary schools each week who had been identified by their head teachers and family liaison officers as needing additional support.

Students undergo a period training before attending classes each Saturday. The programme, which equates to approximately £480,000 of free intervention to the local community each year, gives students real-world experience and boosts their employability skills while also raising the pupils’ learning, confidence, ability, aspiration and belonging – to deliver better futures.

Established in 2005, the THE Awards are a landmark event in the higher education calendar.

They are judged by a panel of sector experts and shine a light on the exceptional work taking place in higher education.