The landscape of UK higher education is facing a confluence of challenges, demanding innovative and empathetic approaches from all of us supporting the student journey. Financial pressures, evolving student needs, and the lasting impacts of the pandemic require a fundamental rethink of how we foster both student wellbeing and meaningful engagement.
A recent joint evasys and AHEP webinar, held on 9 April 2025 and chaired by Helena Lim, Academic Lead and Head of Opportunities at evasys, brought together key perspectives on this topic. The expert panel featured: David Gilani, Head of Student Engagement and Advocacy at Middlesex University, Emily McIntosh, Director of Student Success at the University of the West of Scotland, and Janette Nhangaba, Director of Student Services at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. Their insights offer valuable, practical strategies for professional services colleagues navigating this complex terrain.
Setting the scene:
Helena Lim framed the discussion by outlining the webinar’s core aim: to explore practical strategies for enhancing student wellbeing and engagement within the current higher education landscape. Drawing context from the recent evasys research report, Future-Proofing Student Engagement, Helena underscored the ‘perfect storm’ of challenges facing institutions, including evolving student expectations and significant financial constraints.
Key interconnected issues brought to the forefront included: the profound impact of student financial hardship on their ability to engage; the closely linked rise in student mental health concerns like stress, anxiety, and isolation; the need for a broader understanding of ‘engagement’ beyond traditional metrics; the crucial role of fostering a sense of belonging; and the necessity of using data intelligently to inform strategies, measure impact, and drive genuine enhancement. These complex and urgent issues, she noted, formed the critical backdrop for the panel’s exploration of practical institutional responses.
Panellist perspectives: contexts and key challenges
The panellists grounded the discussion in their diverse institutional contexts and the specific challenges they face:
David Gilani, Middlesex University: Representing a proudly widening participation university with a highly diverse student body, David focused on the need to support students juggling multiple responsibilities, including long commutes and part-time work. He challenged the notion of students being ‘time-poor’, suggesting they are increasingly ‘time-savvy’. Key challenges include managing differing student expectations and fostering shared learning communities and belonging amidst this diversity.
Emily McIntosh, University of the West of Scotland: Emily highlighted the distinct Scottish context of widening access, the absence of home student fees but subsequent funding pressures, and the enhancement-focused quality framework. With five geographically diverse campuses and many commuting students, UWS actively challenges the traditional ‘full-time student’ model. Emily emphasised using data, like pre-arrival questionnaires, to understand student needs (commutes, working hours) and the interplay between belonging, community, representation, and engagement as pillars of student partnership. Encouraging campus ‘dwell time’ to foster community among commuting students presents a related challenge.
Janette Nhangaba, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford: Janette described the context of a large department within Oxford’s complex collegiate structure, serving a highly international and multicultural student body. While this diversity is enriching, it presents challenges around potential student segregation, ensuring intercultural learning opportunities are maximised, and cultural accessibility of support services. Balancing intense academic pressure with a rich co-curricular life and effectively measuring the impact of initiatives are also key focuses.
Practical strategies for wellbeing and engagement:
Drawing from the panellists’ insights and broader discussion, here are practical strategies universities can consider:
Financial and practical support
- Offer essential crisis funds and hardship support.
- Implement subsidised food options and consider free breakfast/lunch initiatives (mindful of sustainability and community building).
- Provide subsidised nursery spaces and explore specific funding for students with childcare needs (e.g., Scotland’s discretionary childcare fund).
- Ensure access to practical facilities like microwaves and comfortable eating spaces for students bringing food from home.
- Address commuting costs through advocacy, negotiation with transport providers, or leveraging free travel schemes.
- Design timetables consistently and consider compressed campus weeks to facilitate student part-time work.
- Develop strategies to employ students in relevant part-time roles on campus.
- Leverage alumni networks and fundraising for scholarships and bursaries to reduce student financial pressure.
Wellbeing services and approaches
- Implement early intervention models, using data proactively to identify and support students before crises escalate.
- Adopt ‘opt-out’ models for support where feasible, such as proactively creating learning support plans based on survey disclosures.
- Develop trauma-informed approaches for staff training and student support, embedding it within institutional culture.
- Build strong partnerships with external providers (e.g., NHS, charities) and clarify roles and responsibilities.
- Normalise seeking help and ensure support offers are culturally accessible and sensitive.
Engagement, belonging and learning environments
- Invest in and prioritise student-led academic societies to build community within programmes.
- Use pre-arrival surveys and belonging data to understand individual student goals, backgrounds, and needs, tailoring support accordingly.
- Develop personalised support tracks considering prior experiences and learning styles.
- Explicitly communicate institutional expectations while fostering an environment of dignity, acceptance, and authenticity where students feel seen, heard, and understood.
- Frame the learning experience as intercultural, preparing students for a globalised society.
- Involve students actively in co-designing services and responding to feedback (student partnership).
Data and impact
Use data intelligently – be data-informed (considering context and qualitative insights) rather than purely data-led.
Focus on measuring the impact of initiatives, particularly on retention, to demonstrate value and justify resources.
Communication and partnership
Ensure clear, relevant, and timely communication regarding support services.
Maintain strong, honest relationships with student representatives (student partnership), especially when making difficult financial decisions.
Final takeaways from the panel
As the webinar concluded, the panellists offered key advice for colleagues:
Janette Nhangaba emphasised the need to demonstrate the impact of services, particularly on retention, using data that translates into financial terms, especially when budgets are tight. Alongside this quantitative approach, she stressed the equal importance of digging beyond the data to truly understand the stories and worldviews of students.
Emily McIntosh advocated for being data-informed rather than purely data-led, recognising that what counts cannot always be counted. She urged colleagues to maintain authenticity in their practice and value the human element of support, which cannot be reduced solely to metrics, especially when students need consistency and certainty.
David Gilani highlighted the critical importance of investing in strong student partnerships and voice mechanisms. Given the difficult financial decisions ahead, he argued that involving students honestly in conversations about resource allocation is essential for making better choices and knowing sooner when things aren’t working.
Concluding thoughts
Supporting today’s students requires a holistic, adaptable, and deeply human-centred approach. By implementing practical, evidence-informed strategies derived from both data and student voices, fostering genuine partnerships, and advocating for necessary resources (while acknowledging staff wellbeing), professional services play a critical role in creating university environments where all students can succeed, despite the challenges they face.
A recording of the webinar is available here: Enhancing Student Wellbeing and Engagement – in collaboration with evasys
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