Posted 18 May 2026

Go Higher West Yorkshire’s (GHWY) inaugural Evaluation Exchange Event created a valuable opportunity for practitioners working across access, success, progression and evaluation to share practice, reflect on challenges, and learn from one another in an open and supportive environment.

Colleagues from across the GHWY consortium came together for the event, which was hosted in partnership with Leeds Beckett University. 

The programme featured presentations from colleagues across a range of higher education providers, each offering a different perspective on evaluation and Access and Participation Plan (APP) activity:

• The University of Leeds shared insights from the Leeds Futures programme and demonstrated how large-scale, data-informed widening participation activity can be evaluated across multiple subject strands and learner groups.
• Leeds Arts University explored students’ experiences of tutor-student relationships within a creative arts context, highlighting how qualitative institutional research can help providers better understand awarding gaps and the lived experiences of students of minoritised ethnicities.
• Leeds Beckett University shared an overview of the UJIMA Residential Project and its work to support Black African and Black Caribbean boys aged 15-16 through a targeted residential experience. The presentation explored the role residential activity can play in supporting belonging, confidence, and transition into higher education, alongside reflections on the project’s evaluation approach and key learning so far.
• Colleagues from Luminate Education Group reflected on work exploring student financial wellbeing at smaller providers, including some of the practical and capacity-related challenges involved in undertaking meaningful evaluation activity within more limited institutional contexts.
• The University of Huddersfield shared reflections from the early stages of implementing interventions through their Access and Participation Plan, offering honest insight into the opportunities and challenges involved in embedding evaluation into evolving support structures and pedagogical practice. 

One of the key strengths of the event was the breadth of perspectives represented. Attendees heard from colleagues working in different institutional contexts and professional roles, with presentations ranging from large-scale mixed-methods evaluations to smaller, practice-based approaches. The variety of methods, programmes and provider types helped create an engaging programme with something relevant for everyone in attendance. 

The event also aimed to create space for meaningful conversation and connection between colleagues. Alongside the presentations, attendees had opportunities to network over lunch, discuss shared challenges, and explore how different providers are responding to evolving evaluation expectations within higher education. Feedback highlighted the welcoming atmosphere of the event, with many attendees valuing the chance to meet others working in similar areas and exchange ideas in a setting that felt collaborative and approachable.

We were also delighted to welcome Dr Omar Khan, CEO of The Centre for Transforming Access and Student Outcomes in Higher Education (TASO), who joined us virtually as keynote speaker. His contribution provided valuable insight into the role of evidence and evaluation within the sector and helped frame many of the discussions that took place throughout the day. 

The positive response to the event reinforced the value of creating opportunities for GHWY’s 13 members to come together to share evaluation learning and practice. We are keen to continue building these conversations and developing future opportunities for collaboration, networking and professional learning across the consortium and wider sector. 

 Get involved

If you are interested in attending future events, contributing a presentation, or engaging with our work around evaluation and APP practice, we would love to hear from you. You can contact us at [email protected] 

 

Rob Scott, GHWY Training Delivery Officer