Access to HE students honoured at event in parliament

The annual Keith Fletcher Awards took place at the Palace of Westminster on Wednesday 2 April.

Named in memory of Keith Fletcher, a passionate advocate for adult learning, these awards, now in their fourteenth year, honour the achievements of Access to HE students who have overcome significant challenges to demonstrate outstanding academic performance and commitment to their studies.

The Access to HE Diploma is a Level 3 post-16 qualification focused on providing adult learners who wish to enter higher education the opportunity to gain the necessary qualifications in the subject areas they wish to follow. QAA has been responsible for the regulation of this qualification since 1997. Last year, we celebrated the registration of our millionth student onto this programme of study.

The winner of this year's Outstanding Academic Achievement award was Elizabeth Histed from Shrewsbury Colleges Group, with Paolo Cruz from South Thames Colleges Group also being highly commended in this category.

Elizabeth said: "Being awarded the Keith Fletcher Award has shown me all that is possible to achieve, even when coming from a background with little education since I was a young teenager."

The winner of this year's Outstanding Commitment to Study award was Sheree O’Neil from USP College, with Melika Ronnie from Milton Keynes College Group also being highly commended in this category.

Sheree said: “Winning the Keith Fletcher Access to HE award is an incredible honour, and it means so much to have my hard work recognised. It’s given me a huge confidence boost as I continue my journey to becoming a nurse, inspiring me to keep pushing forward and make a real difference in people’s lives.”

QAA's Director of Regulatory Services Debra McFarlane spoke at the event about the Access to HE Diploma and the success of our students.

"We at QAA are constantly overawed by the extraordinary achievements of our Access to HE students, and feel so very privileged to have played a small part in contributing to their progress into higher education and their future success," she said.