The Isaac Newton Trust’s Widening Participation & Induction Fund has contributed to many University of Cambridge College initiatives since the first round in 2022.
We are proud to have provided support to the Sustainable Urban Futures project, led by Churchill College, University of Cambridge CORE Fellow Dr Rachel Thorley. SUF hosted a cross-disciplinary summer residential for Y12s from widening participation backgrounds to explore interdisciplinary courses through the lens of global sustainable development. Aspirational and confidence-boosting to encourage Y12s to apply to Cambridge or other leading universities.
It's been a hugely successful initiative and has received positive feedback from many student participants. Freddy told the team, “…SUF helped me finalise my next step in wanting to pursue mathematics. Mathematics is really something I share with people, so teaching at a high-level sounds perfect for me. With this career I could inspire and mentor someone else in pursuing mathematics, whilst possibly working on research and ideas of my own.”
This is an excellent and ongoing project, with Sustainable Urban Futures 2025 opening for applications soon!
At Churchill College, 40 Sixth formers from underrepresented backgrounds had a taste of life at Cambridge on Sustainable Urban Futures Residential. This cross disciplinary experience had lectures, team projects and building an eco-home! Image credit: Dr Rachel Thorley, Fellow in Engineering, Churchill College