Local pupils create resources to promote university

The University of Wolverhampton put pupils from Colton Hills Community School through their promotional paces recently as part of a wider, national scheme to inspire people to enter higher education.

Working with the National Networks for Collaborative Outreach (NNCO), a Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) scheme, the University aims to encourage more young people into Higher Education. The NNCO brings together universities and further education colleges into local networks to provide coordinated outreach to schools and colleges. 

Twenty 16 and 17 year olds, who were chosen because they had expressed an interest in progressing onto university, were tasked with designing and creating a range of advisory resources for teachers, parents and pupils focusing on how parents can support their children, how teachers can encourage and support pupils and how older pupils can support younger pupils – all with the aim of making the transition from GCSEs to HE easier.

The two day event was run in conjunction with video production company, Stones Throw Media, set up by University of Wolverhampton Graduates, Matt Weston and Mike Chinn. In a series of workshops pupils were given hands-on training in filming, editing and animation and were encouraged to explore other marketing activities such as creating posters and leaflets and using other channels to communicate their key messages.