References have always represented a challenge for those who have to collate them and it is vital to see every part of the chain of writing as equally important to the next. For a start nearly all subject staff have to be involved, so whereas only a couple of people might be support in final UCAS applications, who may have extensive knowledge, there can be significant cumulative work if this is to be affective. To schools, references can present a large burden. Why? Because state schools (and in particular comprehensive schools) are still wholly underrepresented at university, especially at the higher tariff institutions, and there is a chance a compelling reference help secure a student a place. Since the aim at Causeway is to close the access gap, then we can certainly use the reference to do that.

The UCAS reference will be a way in which we can ensure that students have their best selves represented. Focus on students from under-represented groups is more important than ever as their usual support networks are regrouping after fighting so many fires.

There is a way in which we can speak for students and make their contexts and potential clear in a time when universities will have to be more flexible. This year applicants will face challenges their predecessors will not have faced, many of which will exacerbate inequality in mobility and which are evolving in front of us. It has been well documented that our most disadvantaged students have found working at home unsustainable and that this is having an impact on their achievement and progress. All students will find accessing work experience and online enrichment activities difficult, with a paradoxical excess and dearth of choice, and it is not hard to imagine that the students we most want to reach in order to widen participation will find these challenges most difficult to overcome without additional support. I am impressed by that, it’s not an easy time to be making future plans, I can barely make a choice about tomorrow’s dinner as the stock at my supermarket is so erratic. In this context, the university admissions juggernaut moves on as though students had not had a day out of school and teachers have all remained at work. It seems that amidst this chaos there are still plenty of students applying to university.

I do not envy the role of the teacher right now some students in school, some not in school but everyone needing to be educated, exasperated parents asking you to set work, but not too much work and constant changes in guidelines being issued. For some reason everyone thinks you’ve only just reopened when you never actually closed and then of all people, Andrew Adonis, thinks you’re not doing enough compared to private schools and wants to start up the ‘lazy teacher’ chant that comes around at least every year. Thank goodness the summer break is here and we can all get away on a well-deserved…oh, maybe no.

Ucas reference example