Making a difference

02 Nov 2011

Social responsibility flagships unveiled.

The University’s contribution to society on a local, national and international level is now being showcased by six flagship projects.

The projects have been chosen from a shortlist of 23, to highlight the work we do that affects people from across campus; in Manchester and the North West; in the UK and right across the globe.  

Commenting on the six flagships Professor Aneez Esmail, Associate Vice-President for Social Responsibility, Equality and Diversity said:  “Social responsibility is a key goal for the University, equal in emphasis to research and learning.

“What we do through our social responsibility agenda makes a huge difference to the lives of thousands of people. The projects are just the first of many that will be chosen over the coming months to illustrate our commitment to this key goal.”

Here’s a brief outline of the six flagships – each will be featured in more detail in coming issues of UniLife:

Equity and merit scholarships

These assist talented, but economically disadvantaged international students. Our scheme was launched in Uganda in 2007 and has been extended to Rwanda, Uganda and Bangladesh.  So far more than 300 students have benefited from the scheme.

Jodrell Bank Outreach

A whole raft of activity takes place at Jodrell Bank to bring science to life for everyone from our students to local schoolchildren. Examples include the new Discovery Centre, regular ‘Meet the Scientist’ events and the Jodrell Bank Live Music Festival.

Legal Advice Centre

Local lawyers and barristers volunteer their time to supervise our law students who have the opportunity to apply their newly acquired legal knowledge and experience the practice of law.

Valuing older people

The Manchester Museum and the Whitworth Art Gallery run a programme called ‘Valuing Older People’ which aims to encourage older people to take part in cultural and learning activities.  A great example is the ‘Reminiscence programme’ which takes Museum objects intoresidential homes, day units and community centres across the region.

Volunteering

Students and staff from across the University carry out a huge amount of volunteer work, ranging from the Sports Volunteer scheme, which works with communities to support engagement with sporting activities, through to acting as School Governors and raising funds for many charities.

Manchester Access Programme (MAP)

MAP targets local sixth formers from less-privileged backgrounds and supports them to progress into higher education, whether here at Manchester or elsewhere within the UK. Since it began in 2005,

380 MAP students have been successful in gaining a place at Manchester with others going to universities including Cambridge, Imperial and UCL in London.