A QUEEN'S University academic has won an overseas research grant to help widen participation in education.
Tim Crawford, a learning development tutor, was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to visit Canada and New Zealand.
His project will inform policy and practice by learning from countries that have pioneered targeted, aspiration-raising programmes for disadvantaged young people.
It is hoped this will increase their progression to, and attainment in, higher education.
Churchill Fellows travel the world in search of solutions for Britain and Northern Ireland's most pressing problems. They will visit 51 countries with a mission to inspire change in their professions and communities when they return.
Mr Crawford will visit widening participation programmes across nine cities.
His fellowship has the potential to improve the representation of disadvantaged groups in Northern Ireland in higher education, particularly working class, Protestant boys.
Part of his job has involved developing a programme for under-represented school-aged children. Through this, he has seen the benefits that outreach activity can have in equipping pupils with the confidence and self-belief to attend university and flourish.
Julia Weston, Chief Executive of Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, said she was excited to see the new ideas that this year's Churchill Fellows would bring back on a range of practical challenges.
"Since our creation in 1965 we have appointed 5,800 fellows and we have seen many of them become knowledge leaders and innovators in their professions and communities across the UK. This is a crucial bridge of people and ideas between the UK and the world," she said.
