Libraries and Access and Participation Plans - 19 June 2025
SCONUL was joined by almost 100 participants for a webinar on Access and Participation Plans (APP) and the role of the library.
Our first speaker, Libby Homer, Director of Student and Library Services at Anglia Ruskin University, looked at the APP she written this year and the changes that have come about from previous years, including a new focus on evaluation of interventions and the ‘Equality of Opportunity Risk Register’ that allows universities to look at 12 particular risks and what elements of the student body falls into each. Intersectionality can mean that some groups become very high risk.
Libby also talked about how she uses the Graduate Outcomes data to weight risk and the funding the library has received to help with APP, including support for an etextbook scheme and the use of paid student interns to help with project work.
The next speaker, Pete Maggs, Director of Libraries and Learning Resources at Nottingham Trent University, spoke about his work to develop Theory of Change to measure the impact of interventions, looking at the narrative, empirical evidence and causality. He also mentioned how ‘Success for All’works at NTU and how it aims to address disparities between students.
Our final speaker was Andrew Barker, Director of Library Services & Learning Development at Lancaster University, who talked about two specific projects that APP funding has allowed to happen. Reciprocal learning, paired two students with a member of senior teaching staff and has proved highly successful and the Schools Engagement project supports 6th Form students with their individual research projects.
There were a number of questions from our audience, largely focused around measuring impact and funding for projects.