Access and Outreach
Pembroke College seeks to inspire and nurture a spirit of lifelong learning and enquiry in line with our statutes, providing ‘education for the common good’. We encourage pupils from diverse backgrounds to apply to the UK’s top universities, including the University of Oxford.
At Pembroke, Access and Outreach spans a series of academic programmes and cross-institutional initiatives for pupils between the ages of 9 and 18 in West London, the North West, and the North East of England. These include OxNet, Pembroke Scholars, and the Atom Valley Education Challenge Consortium (AVECC). We work closely with a number of partners across the UK – including schools, universities, and third-sector organisations – as well as the Centre for Research in Education at Oxford (CredOx), which is based at Pembroke.
Our three primary aims are to be:
- Attainment driven: We aim to raise educational standards through emphasising challenging but sustained academic activities, which have a direct impact on pupil attainment. This is to be achieved through taking a long-term, strategic, and unapologetically academic approach to delivering our Access goals, which are centred on the equitable distribution of opportunity;
- Regionally focused: We aim to build a diverse network of educational partnerships between schools and universities that encourage regional collaboration to address specific local needs. By working within this network, we seek to ensure that every young person in our target regions, irrespective of background, has access to the University of Oxford and other competitive universities;
- Community orientated: We aim to take a longitudinal, collaborative, and holistic approach to Access, by working with younger age groups and wider communities as well as schools and colleges. By strengthening these community relationships and encouraging the sharing of expertise between numerous parties, we remain responsive to the voices of local actors, transparent in our processes, and collaborative within our sector.
For more about Pembroke’s Access and Outreach work, head to the OxNet website.
If you’re interested in supporting us or getting involved, you can contact Morgan Lewis (Access and Outreach Manager) at access.outreach@pmb.ox.ac.uk.
Find below some examples of OxNet's success and features in the general media. Screenshots and texts are taken from various sites, please follow the links to read more.
Ashton Sixth Form College receives the most Oxbridge offers in the borough
Ashton Sixth Form College has a long-standing partnership with Oxford University as The Goldsmiths’ Sutherland Centre for Philosophy and World Religions in partnership with Pembroke College for over ten years.
OxNet Philosophy and World Religions Seminar Series 2023
"Students participating in the OxNet Access Programme 2023 recently completed their 6-session seminar series. These seminars allow students to work closely with academics and develop their academic skills and knowledge."
Six Ashton Sixth Form College Students Join 2023 OxNet programme
"Following a competitive application process, our students on the programme will be joining other students from the North West and North East of England and London, throughout the programme. Students recently attended the first in-person event, Study Skills Day 2023. Students had the opportunity to meet others on the programme, participate in subject lectures, work on academic study skills with Dr Claus and lots more!"
Read more here.
Ashton Sixth Form College Students Receive Oxbridge Offers
"Five outstanding students from Ashton Sixth Form College have received offers to study at The University of Oxford and The University of Cambridge.... Ashton Sixth Form College has been a host of The Goldsmiths’ Sutherland Centre for Philosophy and World Religions in partnership with Pembroke College, University of Oxford for over 10 years. The long-standing partnership provides incredible opportunities for students, including the Oxnet Access Programme."
Read more here.
Students Given Better Opportunity for a Space in Top Universities with New Programme at Blackburn College
"Blackburn College is set to become a hub for the prestigious ‘OxNet’ programme, which will help students from across Blackburn, Darwen, Hyndburn and Rossendale get information and advice about applying to Oxford, Cambridge and Russell Group universities."
Burnley Professor Inspires Students at Launch of Top University Access Programme
"Former Blackburn College student, Dr Helen McCabe, who is now assistant professor in political theory at Nottingham University, spoke of her time studying at Oxford University, at the launch of the OxNet programme held at Blackburn College.
The OxNet programme is an intensive 12-month academic programme for Year 12 pupils living in the North West, North East and London, which leads to a residential at Pembroke College at Oxford University. The course involves a mixture of study days, essays, series, Easter conferences, summer schools and talks."
Read more here.
