Care Experienced and Estranged Students Open Day

By Chloe Pomfret

Oxford’s Class Act Campaign are running a session dedicated to Estranged and Care Experienced Students interested in applying to Oxford and Higher Education 📚

It will be hosted at Magdalen College at 4pm on 15th September, with FULL travel reimbursements and FREE accommodation provided for students who want to attend!

We'll cover how to apply as an Estranged/Care Experienced Student, the financial and wellbeing support offered, and a q&a with current students answering any questions you may have”

Whilst each person's estrangement story is unique, we all share some things; loneliness during holidays; celebrating achievements alone; facing challenges without a family to lean on.

If you google estrangement, synonyms like alienation, isolation, and distance appeared on screen- words that hit home for every estranged person. Some of us, myself included, are fortunate to stumble upon friends who become family along the way. I found these friends during my transition into supported housing at 16, following a period of homelessness, and later with the friends I made at university who became like family to me. The presence of a strong support network is crucial; it's there to encourage you to reach for the stars, to stand by you when things go wrong, and to celebrate your victories alongside you.

This is why I’ve collaborated with the University to host a session dedicated to estranged and care experienced students during Open Day. When I was a prospective University applicant, I had so many questions: "Is affording this even possible?", "What kind of support is there?", "Do others like me even exist here?”. Oxford provides the most generous financial support of any UK University with their Crankstart Scholarship and the Care Experienced and Estranged Bursary (CEESB). We have the Student Union’s Class Act Campaign, which I am Co-Chair and the Estranged Student Representative for, alongside our brilliant Care Experienced Representative, and the society OxCae for care experienced, adopted and estranged students.

This Open Day session covers the ins and outs of applying as an estranged and care experienced student and the financial and wellbeing support offered at Oxford. Furthermore, it offers a golden opportunity via a Q&A with current students who've had the same questions and concerns about applying. Full travel reimbursements and free accommodation will also be provided for students who want to attend, which has generously offered by Magdalen College. Support for care experienced and estranged students has certainly improved over the years, but it’s simply not enough. By hosting this open day, I hope that we can encourage more care experienced and estranged students to apply to Oxford and Higher Education.