England's top universities taking 'lower proportion of state pupils'

One of these such universities is Oxford. This university has the lowest proportion of state-educated students. It has also in recent years experienced a drop in entrants from this

background. In 2015/16, 55 per cent of its intake was from state schools and colleges. This is compared to 57.7 per cent five years ago.  All other Russell Group universities have seen an

increase the last five years. However, when looking at the breakdown of the figures, Russell Group universities tend to be at the bottom half of the table. Dr Samina Khan, director of

undergraduate admissions and outreach at Oxford University, said: “Figures released last month by Ucas show that our offer rates for students from low-participation areas are outperforming

the rates that would be expected given predicted grades and subject choice.  “We are also expecting to increase our proportion of state school students for 2016 entry, having made more than

59% of offers to state-educated applicants in this cycle.”  Compared to top universities outside of England, at Cardiff, 85.5 per cent of the entrants were from state schools, 69.7 per cent

of the students starting at Edinburgh, 84.6 per cent of those going to Glasgow, and 98.4 per cent of those at Queen's University Belfast. On the back end of the scale is Durham (61.4

per cent), Bristol (61.9 per cent) and Cambridge (65.5 per cent).  There are also a few Russell Group universities that have a relatively high number of pupils from state schools. There are

University of Liverpool (88.8 per cent) and Queen Mary, University of London (88.7 per cent).  A Russell Group spokesman said: "Collectively, Russell Group universities have

outperformed the sector as a whole in increasing the percentage of students from state school backgrounds but there is more work that needs to be done. "This is why Russell Group

universities in England alone will this year invest £254 million in scholarships, fee waivers, bursaries and outreach activities aimed at the most disadvantaged to help those with the

ability to attend.  "We recently launched Advancing Access, an online platform that provides a wide range of vital resources for teachers to help them give talented pupils the support

and encouragement they need to apply to a leading university. "We are committed to ensuring that students who would benefit from an education at one of our institutions have the best

possible opportunity to do so, regardless of their background." The universities with the highest percentages of state school undergraduates were Liverpool Hope University (99.4 per

cent), Bolton (99.3 per cent) and Bedfordshire (99 per cent).  When considering the figures on students from "low participation neighbourhoods", Sunderland University has the

highest proportion of entrants (29.9 per cent). This can be contrasted with University College London, which had a 3 per cent entrance from this background. Cambridge had a similar number,

3.1 per cent.  A Cambridge University spokesman said: “We use a contextual data flagging system to ensure that the achievements of students from disadvantaged backgrounds are assessed in

their full context and that students with great academic potential are identified.  “Widening participation further will require Government, schools, universities, charities, parents and

students to work closely together.  “We will continue to work hard with all parties to raise aspirations among disadvantaged groups and to improve their access to Cambridge and higher

education in general.”