The British Academy’s map of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts for People and the Economy provision in the UK is a welcome and extremely helpful tool in understanding access to higher education courses in SHAPE disciplines across the country. Promoting student choice is a cornerstone of the HE regulatory framework in England, and choice is also central to efforts to widen participation in HE, given that students from underrepresented backgrounds are more likely to choose to study locally.
Future work to further build out the map could complement the distance-based definition used currently with a definition of ‘local’ SHAPE provision that is linked to the time students spend commuting to their home institution. This would add further nuance to the regional picture that emerges from the map and improve understanding of what constitutes viable local provision.
This project demonstrates that connectivity across regions, sectors and communities is essential. London Higher’s Capital Gains map highlights how participation with humanities and social sciences is aided by collaborative working from higher education institutions across the countries and their communities.
