Self-declaration
Declaring care experience can benefit students as universities may provide contextualised entry, year-round accommodation or other supports, and they may be eligible for financial support such as bursaries. But students may be reluctant to declare because they aren't aware of the benefits or may fear that they will face stigma if people know.
For most universities, one of the main ways we know if someone is Care-Experienced is if they tick the box on their UCAS form when they apply. The box to self-declare care experience does not appear on the form until an applicant has filled in some of their details.
In the video below, Lee talks about her reasons for not declaring her care experience.
Transcript
I didn’t know. I knew I was in care, but I didn’t know that care experienced was a thing, like where it helped me in any way. I didn’t know that it entitled me to any sort of help, because if I had known about it when I was younger, it certainly would have been something I would have engaged in, because it was something I needed when I was younger. But declaring it didn’t occur to me either because I didn’t realise that care experienced was something that would make a difference, so I didn’t declare that I was care experienced because I didn’t know, it was just another part of my life. And discrimination was something that I had anyway, so it didn’t matter that I was in care, I had it anyway.
Activity 8
Take a moment to think of something personal to you that not many people know.
Consider the reasons you choose to keep it private. How you would feel if somebody knew this about you before you had even met them?
Discussion
Many Care-Experienced people find it difficult to disclose that they have been in care. This might be due to prior experiences of discrimination and bullying. They may worry that the information they give will prejudice their application. Ticking the ‘care leavers’ box on the UCAS application can feel stigmatising.
Students have the right to choose whether or not they declare their care experience, and how they choose to do it. If a student you are supporting discloses to you they are Care-Experienced, you may be the first person at university they have told. It could mean they would benefit from some further support. Consider if their situation is impacting on their studies. Be sensitive with the information they have given you. Ask if it’s ok to record this anywhere or pass this information on.
Take a moment to think of what first steps you would take should a student disclose this information to you. Who would be your key points of contact to ensure the student receives the support they require, and that the information disclosed is properly recorded?
Watch Gary talk about what happened when he ‘ticked the box’ to declare his care experience.
Transcript
I think when I initially went to university there was a box on the application form that said ‘care experienced’ but I didn’t even understand the definition of care experienced at that time. I actually, funnily enough, ticked the box because I’d been to rehab. I thought that my rehab would have been classed as residential care. So, I ticked the box for residential care, and I sort of ticked the box for the wrong reason, and then it turns out that I actually could have just ticked the box if it just said ‘care experienced’.
my whole time throughout university, I’d already defined myself as care experienced, and you would think that ticking that box there would be some protocol in place that the university would be giving me a lot more support than what they actually did. Fair do’s, they financially gave me £1000, but apart from that they never actually gave me physical support, they never gave me advice. And that is a flaw that I feel I could have benefitted from if there was that support in place. Especially initially when you go in; I was very uncomfortable. I look at it now, I’ve got counsellors and stuff now, but even having that right counsellor or even one point of call in the university when you go in, someone that you can speak to, I think that would be very important, it would be a very important factor and would have helped me in the long run.
Care-Experienced Student Bursary