Strategic partnership to improve social mobility in Crawley

Strategic partnership to improve social mobility in Crawley. The University of Sussex has formed a strategic partnership with a national social mobility charity that will help able students in Crawley to reach their full academic potential. Launching in autumn 2016, the partnership with the Villiers Park Educational Trust has enabled the development of a programme to help students from lower income and other under-represented backgrounds reach their full academic potential, gain access to leading universities or other centres of excellence, and thrive once there. This new Scholars Programme will recruit students from six local schools and colleges in Crawley. Professor Clare Mackie, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Sussex, commented: "We jumped at the opportunity to form this partnership with Villiers Park Educational Trust. "At Sussex we are absolutely committed to opening the doors of the University to talented students from all backgrounds - and widening participation sits at the very heart of our overall strategy. "We know that programmes such as the Crawley Scholars Programme can really work.