What social purpose means at BGU:
We support individuals to realise their ambitions and create positive change in their communities and beyond.
We have a long history of empowering our students to volunteer and demonstrate good citizenship, providing them with opportunities through our community development work. We run an award, so that the activity that students undertake gains recognition.
We are dedicated to improving opportunity and advancing social mobility.
We promise to support our students to advance their socio-economic situation and develop the skills needed for a life of impact to contribute to the social mobility of others.
- We have many non-traditional learners with 67% of our students the first in their family to go to university.
- Widening participation through BGU’s First Steps programme.
- The Access and Participation Plan (APP) for BGU reflects a long-standing commitment to increasing access and widening participation locally (especially), as well as regionally and nationally.
As a Civic University we use our campus and resources for the benefit of our local community, this includes our students.
We offer our gym and fitness classes free of charge to all our students and learners, as we recognise the importance of a student’s well-being on their engagement and development.
We work with local schools and utilise our cinema for GCSE text screenings and our playing fields for school sports days.
Recently we arranged for an organisation working with disadvantaged families to use our site for a picnic, something some hadn’t experienced before.
We have received funding which has enabled us to invite families from the local area to attend the cinema free of charge for a series of family screenings. Some children report that they have never been to a cinema before.
We make our Archaeology facilities and equipment available to support community driven research projects.
A commitment to creating positive change in the community through projects and initiatives which align with our social purpose aims.
We have staff whose roles are dedicated to bridging the gap between BGU as an academic institution and local organisations.
We have a flagship community project based on the Ermine Estate in Lincoln, led by BGU staff. Many of our students volunteer there and schools and the wider community use the facility regularly. Various successful funding bids facilitate a variety of initiatives such as the development of a community garden during 2024/25 and public engagement activities in celebration of humanities research for the Being Human Festival to take place in November 2024.
BGU being partners / supporting other organisations in running community projects.
A portfolio, continually evolving, with a strong emphasis on social purpose.
This includes teaching, youth work, counselling, health and social care, early years, special educational needs and inclusion, career development and business with a social enterprise element.
We have a strong commitment to developing apprenticeships and partnerships so that we can appeal to a broad base of students and learners.
We collaborate and exchange both knowledge, research and thinking with others, particularly where this supports Equality Diversity and Inclusion
Our knowledge exchange activity focuses on Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts for People and the Economy (SHAPE).
The Base for Research in Inclusion, Diversity & Equality (BRIDgE) at BGU is an integral element of the university’s profile.
We host a Social Economy Hub and Academy to support social and ethical businesses.
Other examples include learning differences, voluntary service development and education.
