A group of leading educational access charities and not-for profit organisations is calling for the government to take action to ensure that young people from less advantaged backgrounds do not face additional barriers in accessing further study, training and employment opportunities, following the allocation of A-level grades this year.

We recognise that the circumstances surrounding this year’s A-levels made any ideal outcome impossible, but it is clear that – in a significant number of cases – individual students have been left with their future plans in disarray. What’s more concerning is that many of these students are from the least advantaged backgrounds. These are the young people who already face the biggest barriers in accessing higher education; barriers that have been compounded during lockdown. Every hour, we are encountering more young people whose plans for university, apprenticeships or jobs have been seriously affected because they were statistical exceptions.

Black Lives Matter. The murder of George Floyd, and the powerful response around the world, has shown yet again that anti-black racism is a real, specific and frequently violent force. It exists not just in the US, but here in the UK and elsewhere. We think it’s important to add our voices to the millions acknowledging this fundamental reality, before looking at how we will respond at Causeway.

As a charity supporting young people to overcome barriers in accessing Higher Education, structural inequalities are a daily focus of our work. This does not mean that we can sit back, confident that we are already part of the solution. We’ve listened to the disappointment expressed at organisations claiming to be in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement while being oblivious to racism within their own organisations. Tackling structural racism demands action at the political level, but also at the level of organisations and individuals. This means we need to look inwards too.