News and blog

Our submission to the APPG on Students’ Commission on Students in Higher Education highlights the importance of evidence-based policy in widening participation, supporting student mental health, and improving access and outcomes for disadvantaged groups. It draws attention to gaps in evidence, the implications of funding pressures, and the need for targeted support for underrepresented students.

Jezz Brown, incoming Economic and Social Research Council PhD researcher at the University of Manchester, explores the working-class student experience of higher education. In line with recent calls for widening participation and ‘getting in, getting on and getting out’, this post argues the case that universities cannot claim to be bastions of opportunity until they provide adequate support for their underrepresented students.

Find out how we have updated the TASO post-entry mapping tool, to better record transition and wellbeing activities, to aid clarity and help develop clearer evidence on what works in student success interventions.

Tatjana Damjanovic, Senior Research Officer reflects on our consultation period with the sector

Dr Shaun Boustani, Senior Research Fellow at University College London Medical School explores how widening access to medical schools could help tackle NHS doctor shortages. He discusses Sutton Trust findings on structural barriers facing disadvantaged applicants and calls for reforms like contextual admissions and alternative entry routes.

TASO is seeking a policy fellow to improve evaluation of activities to address inequalities in higher education.

Find out more about how providers can code and record their post-entry student support activities using the TASO mapping tool and the HEAT database.

Higher education providers collaborate with TASO to develop theories of change for their whole-provider approach.

Dr Omar Khan, CEO at TASO, discusses how higher education can meaningfully address inequality through better implementation, rigorous evaluation, and stronger public narratives. Reflecting on insights from TASO’s fifth annual conference, he calls for a renewed, evidence-based commitment to social mobility, urging the sector to act on what works, not just what’s said.

Alisha Collins, Senior Communications and Engagement Officer at TASO, reflects on how this year’s annual conference has been shaped by the sector – for the sector. From launching a new Events Advisory Group to introducing peer-driven formats like Home Groups and a sector-wide Poster Session, Alisha shares how collaboration and shared challenges are driving a fresh approach to evaluation conversations in 2025.

Luke Arundel discusses making an impact at scale, as part of TASO’s project with the Policy Institute at King’s College London and Exogeneity. The project supports a new initiative to scale behavioural insights, building on a previous study to turn evidence into action.

Tatjana Damjanovic introduces TASO’s upcoming resource–the Higher Education Evaluation Library (HEEL)–which aims to bring together evaluations on access, participation, and student success in one easy-to-use, searchable platform to support a culture of shared learning and improve practices across the sector.