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What is an access and participation plan?

Access and participation plans set out how higher education providers will improve equality of opportunity for underrepresented groups to access, succeed in and progress from higher education.

Download the full access and participation plan for University of Nottingham (PDF)


Key points

The focus of our access and participation plan is on improving access, continuation, and outcomes for specific groups of students. Data shows that, compared to their peers at the University of Nottingham, access, continuation and outcomes are lower for certain groups of students.

  • Students who are eligible for free school meals (FSM) make up a disproportionally smaller proportion of our student body
  • The following groups of students are less likely to achieve a degree award of 2:1 or above:
    • Black students
    • Asian students
    • Students who are eligible for free school meals
    • Mature students (aged over 21 years at enrolment)

Fees we charge 

At the University of Nottingham, the maximum fees charged are:

  • £9,250 for full-time students.
  • £6,935 for part-time students. Part time students will normally pay a fee that is proportional to the amount of study they are undertaking.  

You can see a full list of fees for courses at the University of Nottingham.

Financial help available

A Core Bursary is available to all UK undergraduate students with a household income of less than £35,000. From September 2025, this is £1,400 per year of study.

The Nottingham Potential Bursary is also available which is bursary available to care-experienced students, mature students, part-time students, refugees and young carers. This is £1,000 per year of study.

Some students may find that they are eligible for both bursaries.

The Student Hardship fund is also available to undergraduate students. Students can apply for financial aid if they are struggling with living costs.

Information for students

Prospective students receive information on fees and financial support at in person events, such as our open days, our website and social media and through individual communication by post, email and phone calls. Financial support staff can also provide pre-admission financial information.

Current students receive information about fees and the financial support available on our website and from the Student Services Team.

The most up to date information is available on our website.


What we are aiming to achieve

We aim to improve access to the university for:

  • students who are eligible for free school meals

We aim to increase the proportion of students who enter the university who are eligible for free school meals compared to those who are not. By 2029, we will increase the percentage of students eligible for FSMs enrolling at the university to 12%.

We aim to improve good degree outcomes for:

  • Asian students

We aim to reduce the percentage point difference in good degree outcomes (2:1 or above) between Asian and White students to 7 percentage points by 2028/29.

  • Black students

We aim to reduce the percentage point difference in good degree outcomes (2:1 or above) between Black and White students to 14.3 percentage points by 2028/29.

  • Mature students

We aim to reduce the percentage point difference in good degree outcomes (2:1 or above) between Mature and Young students to 7 percentage points by 2028/29.

  • Students who are eligible for free school meals

We aim to reduce the percentage point difference in good degree outcomes (2:1 or above) between FSM eligible students and non FSM eligible students to 9 percentage points by 2028/29.

We will also contribute to national improvement of the number of students from under-represented groups at higher tariff research intensive universities through our collaboration with Realising Opportunities. View more information.


What we are doing to achieve our aims 

The University of Nottingham is committed to ensuring equal opportunities for all students.

  • We will continue to develop our contextual admissions policy to offer personalised entry requirements to those who are eligible for Free Schools Meals. This means applicants being able to access the university with lower grades than are usually expected due to their personal circumstances.
  • We will continue to work with schools to support more pupils from underrepresented groups to attain good grades and progress to higher education.
  • We will run a new programme of activity to support students from underrepresented groups as they transition into higher education.
  • We will ensure there is substantial financial support including bursaries and hardship funds available to target students.
  • We will further develop our personal tutoring programme to deliver tailored support to underrepresented groups through specially trained tutors.
  • We will further develop our Black Success Academy to provide a programme of activity for Black Students
  • We will complete regular reviews of our degree courses to ensure that they are supporting all students to succeed and progress including reviewing the curriculum.
  • We will further develop our evaluation of activities to enhance our understanding of the student experience.

How students can get involved

Students have co-created the plan. Students have been involved in every stage of writing the plan. Through workshops, students supported identifying risks to equal opportunity at Nottingham and have helped identify what needs to happen to address them.  

Students are represented on the Access and Participation Plan (APP) Steering Group by the Students' Union (SU) Education Officer, ensuring the student voice is heard in all stages (planning, monitoring, evaluation and delivery). The APP Steering Group holds meetings five times per year to review the progress on the work we are doing.

To provide feedback, students can contact the SU Liberation Officer or the SU Education Officer.


Evaluation – how we will measure what we have achieved

Our activities are informed by the best available evidence about what works for students to ensure the greatest possible impact for our students. We collect data and feedback to evaluate the:

  • activities we deliver
  • impact on our targets
  • outcomes of our activities

The Access and Participation Plan Steering Group monitors and reports on these processes to the University Executive Board. The group oversees implementation of actions to ensure ongoing progress against yearly milestones in our access and participation plan. We monitor impact on our target groups, to ensure we are addressing our aims. Where appropriate, we will adjust our activities in the best interests of our students.


Previous plans


Contact details for further information

You can contact Grace Patterson-Mik at grace.patterson-mik@nottingham.ac.uk for more information.