Outreach and Widening Participation

Our on-campus activities are a great way to engage students with our University, and enable them to discover more about their opportunities for the future.

We can provide a bespoke programme to suit your needs, which may include:

• Aspiration-raising talks
• Choices in education workshops
• Campus tours
• Student ambassador Q&A panels 

Our 'Explore' Days give learners the opportunity to experience what it's like to study a particular subject at university. The workshops are delivered by a university lecturer or postgraduate student who will deliver a workshop in their subject area. The learners will see the building, teaching space, lab or lecture theatre where the subject is taught to students, and the workshops are engaging and exciting for the learners to participate in. 

Our current 'Explore' days are offered in the following subject areas:

• Arts and Media 
• Biomedicine
• English
• Engineering 
• Law
• Pursuing Politics and History 
• Solids, Liquids and Gasses Chemistry demonstration

The subject areas offered may change as academic staff time is limited, and some Explore days are offered on specific dates. Please get in touch to discuss your booking request: outreach@salford.ac.uk 

We are happy to arrange bespoke online or on campus visits for targeted learners. This could be arranged on an individual or group basis for students with a disability, young carer, care experienced or estranged students. Young carers are currently caring for a family member who could not manage without help due to frailty, physical or mental illness, addiction or disability. Care experienced students are or have been in the care of the local authority, may be known as 'looked after child'. Estranged students are young people who have no contact with their parents due to a breakdown in the relationship. 

Activities can include campus tours, tailored HE workshops, student support talks, academic talks or tours. We also support a number of targeted learner events throughout the year as part of Greater Manchester Higher.

If you are in Greater Manchester we can visit you and deliver any of our presentations and workshops to groups of students. We can also deliver teacher or key influencer CPD presentations as part of training sessions. If you are interested in any of our targeted learner outreach please contact outreach@salford.ac.uk to discuss your requirements. 

To find out more about the support we offer for targeted learners please visit our student support pages.

Greater Manchester Higher is a collaborative network of HE providers, and is part of the funded Uni Connect programme, a nationally coordinated approach to working with schools, universities, and colleges to help people access higher education. GMHigher aim to improve the provision of information, advice and guidance about progression routes to higher education (HE), alongside offering a menu of activities to raise the aspirations of young people in Greater Manchester.

As partners in the network, the University of Salford Outreach and Widening Participation Team contribute to the events and activities delivered as part of the programme. The programme includes activity at partner institutions such as campus visits, and in-school activity such as talks and information, advice and guidance stands for careers events. 

Full details of upcoming events and booking information can be found on the GM Higher website.

Greater Manchester Higher are committed to attending information and guidance events in schools, to promote higher education to learners in Greater Manchester. Examples of events we might attend include:

• Parents' evenings
• Options evenings

We also offer a wide range of presentations and workshops including:

• Student life presentations (Y10-13)
• HE Uncovered (Y10 - 13)
• General HE presentations (for parents & carers)
• Revision skills  (Y10-11)
• Interview skills (Y10-11)
• Study skills (Y10-11)
• Budgeting (Y12-13)

Full details of the presentations and workshops we can deliver and how to book in a representative can be found on the GM Higher website

The 2023 Science & Engineering STEM Saturday Club engages with science, technology, engineering and mathematics, making learning accessible to all. This year the focus is on animal conservation in the wake of climate change, focusing on ways to support local wildlife as well as more endangered species. The focus will range from working with Salford rangers in the local parks, to visiting Chester Zoo to see endangered species conservation at work towards the end of the programme.

As part of the Saturday Club, students will have the opportunity to meet and work with university experts in zoology, animal cognition and the biodiversity of our planet. As part of the sessions, there will be the opportunity to work on wildlife photography and journalism, hands on conservation work and even looking at how zoos work and why they are important. There will also be Masterclasses to attend with leading industry professionals, helping students to develop a diverse, transferable skill set. During the programme, students will also have the opportunity to work on designing and building their very own bug/hedgehog hotels, which will be placed around campus. Projects will feature in the National Saturday Club Summer Show in London, where members of the public will be able to view the fantastic work of Clubs from across the country.

The Saturday Club is for Y9 - 11 learners, it starts in January and runs for 15 weeks leading up to the NSC Summer Show in July. 

More information about clubs and booking a space can be found on the National Saturday Club website. 

The day will start with our student ambassadors meeting you and your learners at one of the drop off points on campus to take you to a lecture theatre for the welcome talk. Whilst the learners are completing the pre-evaluations, you will be given a timetable of the day and we will take a register of the learners too (which we normally ask for in advance). 

An Outreach Officer will then deliver the introduction before the learners are sent to their first workshop, which will be around Higher Education and the choices they will face when picking their next options. Afterwards, the Student Ambassadors will deliver a tour of our Peel Park Campus which will give the learners the opportunity to ask questions about the different courses available and what life is like at the university. 

After the tour, in most cases, lunch will be provided for learners and teaching staff in the form of a voucher that can be spend at one of the designated restaurants. Following lunch there is one more workshop and a final get together where learners complete the post-evaluations and participate in a Student Ambassador Q&A session, where again learners can ask any questions about HE and their experiences. You will then be directed back to your coach by our Student Ambassadors.  

Key points: 

• Max 60 students per visit
• Minimum of 1 teacher to 20 students  
• The day starts at 9.30am and finishes at 2.30pm  
• In most cases lunch is provided (please confirm this with your event lead)
• There is no parking on site for coaches  
• We do not organise or fund coaches for schools and colleges, if your visit is a Greater Manchester Higher event, please contact your local hub manager to discuss coach booking)

University of Salford, Maxwell Building, 43 Crescent, Salford M5 4WT – we may give you an alternative drop off and pick up point depending on the location of the welcome talk, but we will give you this information in advance 

If you are booking a GMHigher event, please view the Events and Activities page on the website or for all over events please email outreach@salford.ac.uk.

Access our travel page for directions to the university, just scroll down the page for instructions via car. 

If you need to cancel your event, please do so only as a last resort as there are a number of costs we incur as a team based on your booking e.g. catering and student ambassador payments. Please get in contact with the team to discuss any additional requirements, we can only make adjustments to the event if we are aware of these in advance. 

Prior to booking: 

• Read the event details carefully and consider how the engagement will support your broader engagement plan/IAG programme  
• Check the event times, location and travel times and ensure you are able to attend the full event. If you need to leave early you should discuss this with the event organiser before you book by emailing outreach@salford.ac.uk  
• Secure SLT support for off timetable arrangements, staffing supervision and transport  
• Ensure you have adequate time to complete any paperwork and collect parental/guardian consent  

After booking/prior to the event: 

• To return any requests for information needed before an event in good time including number of attendees, monitoring and evaluation data (free school meals, learners who are young carers and learners with disability, etc.) and any special requirements (dietary, medical, accessibility etc).  
• To notify the event organiser(s) of any potential changes or issues with attendance within the time period set out in the cancellation policy (including any changes to which learners will be attending)  
• Ensure that all school/college staff attending the event for supervision purposes are aware of the full event details and support expectations, including managing behaviour of the learners  
• Ensure that all learners attending the event are aware of the event details and expectations    

On the day of the event: 

• If you are running late for any reason, please make the event organisers aware as soon as possible  
• School/college staff are responsible for supervision and behaviour management at all times, including break times 
• Make the event organiser(s) aware of any issues or queries that arise during the event as soon as possible so they can be addressed  
• Support learner engagement and participation in activities 

No, we do not charge a fee for our visits.  

Parking is only available in exceptional circumstances - if you need to discuss parking please contact outreach@salford.ac.uk.