Founded with the aim to make education at Oxford available to ‘gentlemen wishing to live economically’—not exactly an ‘access agenda’ as we would understand it today, but an early attempt to broaden the social depth of the student body - Keble is committed to ensuring the brightest students are able to apply to Oxford regardless of their circumstances, and then to support them throughout their time here.

Working in our link area of the West Midlands, our Outreach Officer and Outreach Fellow both plan and deliver inspiring work with schools, teachers, pupils and their parents. From providing first-hand insights into university life, to offering advice on subject choices and delivering intensive academic tutoring – the Access and Outreach team here works all year round to attract, encourage, and give the brightest applicants the opportunity to make a strong university application.

All of our access and outreach programs at Keble are supported solely by the generous philanthropy of our alumni. Our ambitious range of projects currently cost c.£140,000 per year, and with associated staffing costs, that is £250,000 per year.

Whether just starting at secondary school or looking towards their A-Level studies, it is these opportunities on offer at Keble that give a varied and diverse group of disadvantaged young people the knowledge and self-belief to consider applying to Oxbridge, and then be able to access the support they need throughout their education here. This is an important mission that we are committed to ensuring for future generations. 

Prior to the pandemic, and with the introduction of a dedicated Outreach Fellow, Keble was making significant progress in access. In 2023, over 3,700 people visited Keble on school trips, and we interacted with over 1,500 more schools online. This year’s university-wide analysis of Access & Outreach impact shows that Keble is performing well in the metrics that are most important to us, namely admitting candidates from areas of low progression to Higher Education, and from areas of socioeconomic disadvantage. In 2021, we accepted 24 students from areas with low participation in HE against a target of 8, and 19 from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds against a target of 18.

We have built strong partnerships with charities offering intensive tutoring, interview, and application support, which forms a large part of our programmes at Keble. This includes our work with The Brilliant Club, who mobilise the PhD community to act as tutors for bright students looking to make an application. Another partner, Target Oxbridge, works with students of mixed or sole black African and Caribbean heritage to increase their chances of a successful Oxbridge application, and The Access Project provides mentoring and guidance for students through a dedicated team of school-based Access Officers. This is also supported by digital initiatives such as The Ambassador Programme where pupils can engage with current students from similar backgrounds, and our Keble-based programmes include Subject Taster Days, School Visits and the UNIQ summer school.