Kingston University’s support for care leavers awarded national Quality Mark
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Kingston University’s pioneering support scheme for care leavers, estranged students and young adult carers has received a new Quality Mark from the National Network for the Education of Care Leavers (NNECL).
The NNECL Quality Mark recognises further and higher education institutions support and commitment to students who have left local authority care or are estranged from their family. The Quality Mark is valid for three years.
Kingston University was one of the first institutions in the UK to receive the NNECL Quality Mark when it was introduced in 2022 and is now among the first to have this prestigious accreditation renewed.
Kingston’s KU Cares programme provides proactive practical support including accommodation and financial assistance to students from care experienced and estranged backgrounds who may otherwise struggle to attend or graduate from university.
Established in 2006, the programme was originally aimed at supporting young people who had left local authority care. Over the years, KU Cares has expanded to also support students who are estranged from family, young adult carers and sanctuary scholars with asylum seeker status.
Since its inception, KU Cares has supported hundreds of young people to succeed at university. The programme was recently cited by the Children’s Commissioner for England as an example of best practice support for students from care experienced backgrounds.
Kingston University's Student Inclusion Manager Lydia Ansong welcomed the NNECL accreditation.
“The NNECL Quality Mark is awarded following a rigorous independent review of a university’s support for students who are care experienced or estranged from their families. We are delighted to have been re-awarded the NNECL Quality Mark, which recognises Kingston’s continued commitment to improving access, support, and outcomes for these students.”
Find out more about the support Kingston University offers care leavers and care experienced students through its KU Cares programme.
