‘Care experience’ is defined as any young person who has been under the care of their local authority at any point in their life. The H.E. 4 Me programme offers a range of events tailored specifically for learners with care experience. We offer learners the chance to discover the world of higher education and their future options, focusing on the support available exclusively to learners with care experience. We offer free events for Year 7 – 13s and their supporting adults, providing support throughout each stage of their secondary education and their time in care.
You can read about each of our partner universities’ offers for care leavers here.
We’ve created a new guide to HE for learners with care experience!
CHECK OUT THE GUIDEScroll down to see details of our next event — coming soon — and find out what happened at our most recent Campus Experience Day below.
We were delighted to welcome care experienced Year 11 students to University College Birmingham for a confidence and exam-skills day designed to support young people as they prepare for their GCSEs and think about their future.
The day included an inspiring welcome from Miranda, a care experienced student who shared her journey into higher education, followed by a confidence and resilience workshop delivered by Speakers Trust. Students took part in revision and confidence sessions, explored the campus on a guided tour, and enjoyed lunch together in the McIntyre Dining Area.
Alongside this, teachers, carers and professionals joined a dedicated session focused on supporting care experienced learners and navigating student finance. The day closed with a shared plenary and reflections, celebrating learners’ confidence, engagement and ambition.
Thank you to all the students, staff and partners who made the day such a success. We look forward to welcoming more care experienced learners to future HE4ME events in 2026.
Details for our other H.E. 4 Me events are currently being finalised.
Please check back soon for confirmed dates, venues, and booking information.
Last year, we were thrilled to host a Campus Experience Day at Aston University for Year 7 and 8 learners with care experience. The event gave learners the chance to explore a university campus, take part in engaging subject masterclasses in Biomedical Sciences and English, and hear directly from current students about university life and the support available for care leavers.
It was a fantastic opportunity to discover higher education in an inspiring, supportive environment — and we can’t wait to share details of our next event soon!
To be the first to hear about H.E. 4 Me events, subscribe to our monthly newsletter by emailing us with the word ‘SUBSCRIBE’ as the subject: aimhigher@contacts.bham.ac.uk
Unite Foundation – thisisusatuni.org
BECOME – becomecharity.org.uk
Care Leaver Covenant – mycovenant.org.uk