SOCIAL MARKET FOUNDATION • Some variation and competition between institutions can be a good thing, but there is a clear risk of student choice being motivated by money rather than fit • Moreover, resources don’t seem to track need well, with institutions with fewer care experienced students able to offer greater support A few programs have been demonstrated to make a significant difference, but there is a clear and pressing need to build a robust evidence base of impact • Small samples and poor data linkage at every level make it hard to conduct robust causal studies to determine the efficacy of particular interventions • However, some have produced encouraging results • Independent analysis of Unite Foundation scholarship students, who receive free accommodation, found statistically significant outcomes in both progression and grade outcome for care leaver students compared to their peers • The National Network for the Education of Care Leavers (NNECL) has established a ‘quality mark’, which involves assessing university inputs for care leavers and estranged students against a consistent offer • However, progress has been slow while the previous government deliberated over setting up its own kitemark • The Quality Mark is also hampered by the absence of impact evidence for the contained inputs Moreover, the system largely runs on goodwill – which makes it precarious • Given the budgetary challenges facing the university sector, discretionary spending on care experienced or estranged student support – particularly where unevidenced – may come under pressure Students at the margins risk falling between the cracks • Care leavers are entitled to financial and pastoral support – particularly from local authorities – that care experienced students are not • Despite facing many of the same challenges as care leaver and care experienced students, estranged students are more often overlooked, and harder for institutions to identify and verify, and so many miss out on help RECOMMENDATIONS Funding: Institutions should get grant funding for each care experienced and estranged student they admit • To create a more stable and equitably distributed funding settlement, institutions should receive a minimum £1,000 per year of study for each care- experienced or estranged enrolled student – analogous to the school pupil premium 8