Aimhigher West Midlands

What Aimhigher West Midlands does

Aimhigher West Midlands is a university partnership and educational outreach organisation established in 2009 and based in Birmingham, UK. It is administered by a consortium of six West Midlands universities — Aston University, Birmingham City University, Birmingham Newman University, University College Birmingham, University of Birmingham, and University of Worcester — and operates as a regional hub within the national Uni Connect Programme funded by the Office for Students. The organisation delivers free activities, information, advice, and guidance to young people from Year 7 through Year 13, with a particular focus on students from backgrounds underrepresented in higher education, including care-experienced learners, Pupil Premium/FSM6 students, and those from low higher-education-participation postcodes.

The core product portfolio comprises UniFest (a Year 10 residential summer school hosted across partner university campuses), H.E. 4 Me (a specialist programme for care-experienced learners), Aimhigher Plus (a targeted Year 9–13 widening participation programme), and the Next Steps online platform (supporting Year 11 students transitioning to further education). These are complemented by age-segmented student resources, parent and carer guides, teacher CPD programmes, and a structured mentoring resource library known as the Idea Bank. Reach in 2023/24 is reported at 13,000 young people supported, 400+ activities delivered, and 100+ schools and colleges engaged, with UniFest 2023 achieving a 95% satisfaction rate among 224 participating students.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. All activities are provided free to students, with funding sourced from member university contributions and the Office for Students via the Uni Connect Programme. The organisation employs approximately 5 staff and is administered operationally through the University of Birmingham (the office is hosted at Beech House, Edgbaston, and the contact email uses the bham.ac.uk domain). Revenue is not publicly disclosed, and the entity is not a registered commercial company — it functions as a partnership delivery vehicle for widening participation across the West Midlands region.

Name

Aimhigher West Midlands

Legal name

Aimhigher West Midlands

Website

https://aimhigherwm.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Aimhigher West Midlands is a Birmingham-based university partnership established in 2009 that delivers free outreach programmes to West Midlands students aged 11–18, funded by six member universities and the Office for Students' Uni Connect Programme.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Outreach Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171), Educational Support Services (6117), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Literacy & Numeracy Intervention (Reading/Math Support) (EDAJALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wraparound Student Support & Case Management Services (At-Risk K–12) (EDAJAEAJ), Youth-to-Adult Transition & Life Skills (Independent Living, Soft Skills) (EDAAAFAN), Title I & Compensatory Education Programs (EDAJAGAJ)

Keywords

• Educational outreach services
• Widening participation programmes
• University summer schools
• Student mentoring programmes
• Higher education guidance

Headquarters

HQ city

West Midlands

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. University Partnership Funding: Aimhigher West Midlands is funded by its university member partnership. The organization has been funded by university members since 2009 and is also part of the Uni Connect Programme funded by the Office for Students.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Aimhigher West Midlands delivers free, impartial outreach programmes and resources that help young people from underrepresented backgrounds in the West Midlands make informed choices about higher education. Core offerings include the UniFest Year 10 summer schools held at partner universities, the Aimhigher Plus targeted widening-participation programme (Years 9-13), the H.E. 4 Me programme for care-experienced learners, and the Next Steps online transition platform, complemented by age-specific student resources, parent/carer guides, and teacher CPD.

Product overview

Aimhigher West Midlands is an educational outreach partnership offering a unified platform of programs and resources designed to support young people across all educational stages in making informed decisions about higher education. The core offerings include UniFest (Year 10 summer schools at partner universities), H.E. 4 Me (care-experienced learner support), Aimhigher Plus (targeted Year 9-13 programme), and Next Steps (online transition platform). These are complemented by age-specific resources for primary, secondary, and post-16 students, parent/carer guides, teacher CPD programmes, and mentoring resources. The organization operates as a partnership of six West Midlands universities delivering impartial information, advice, and guidance through various activities including campus visits, subject taster sessions, residential trips, and online platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• H.E. 4 Me: A targeted programme for learners with care experience, offering events tailored specifically for young people who have been under the care of their local authority.
• Aimhigher Plus
• UniFest

Products and services

• UniFest summer school Year 10 summer school programme (free, including meals, accommodation and activities for residential events) that gives eligible young people the opportunity to experience university life, explore subjects, meet university students and staff, and discover progression pathways, delivered across multiple West Midlands partner universities.
• H.E. 4 Me (care-experienced learner programme)

Quantifiable outcome

• 13,000 young people supported in 2023/24
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Aston UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university in the Aimhigher West Midlands consortium. Hosts UniFest STEM summer school events and other outreach activities. Part of the Aimhigher Plus programme under the Uni Connect Programme funded by the Office for Students.
• Birmingham City UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university hosting UniFest events (Beyond the Field: Pathways in Sport, Inside Health Careers). Provides campus facilities and academic staff for outreach activities as part of the Aimhigher Plus programme.
• Birmingham Newman UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university in the Aimhigher West Midlands partnership. Part of the Aimhigher Plus programme offering support for underrepresented students in higher education.
• University College BirminghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university hosting UniFest Inside Health Careers events. Provides facilities and expertise for outreach activities as part of the Aimhigher Plus programme.
• University of BirminghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution for Aimhigher West Midlands office (Beech House, Edgbaston). Lead partner university hosting UniFest Business and Beyond events. Provides administrative support for the partnership.
• University of WorcestercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university hosting UniFest The Mind of a Criminal events. Provides campus facilities and academic staff for the H.E. 4 Me programme for care-experienced learners.
• 100+ Schools and Colleges (West Midlands)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetwork of schools and colleges across the West Midlands that work with Aimhigher to identify eligible students and facilitate participation in outreach activities.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Social Mobility Foundation: UK charity running aspiration-raising programmes, mentoring and internships for high-achieving students from lower-income backgrounds. Similar widening-participation cohort targeting and university-application support mission.
• Future First: UK charity building alumni networks in state schools to help students access higher education and career opportunities. Comparable school-based widening-participation work targeting underrepresented young people.
• Brightside: UK charity providing online mentoring and widening-participation programmes connecting disadvantaged young people with university students and professionals. Operates an analogous mentoring/outreach model for underrepresented HE cohorts.
• Into University: UK-based educational charity running local centres and programmes that support students from disadvantaged backgrounds to access higher education. Directly comparable widening-participation mission, with a national footprint and similar in-school and on-campus delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• The Sutton Trust: UK foundation focused on improving social mobility through education research and programmes targeting disadvantaged young people. Comparable widening-participation focus and policy-influence role, though operating more through research and national programmes than regional in-school delivery.

Regional players

• Greater Manchester Higher: Regional Uni Connect-style partnership of Greater Manchester universities running collaborative widening-participation outreach to school students. Closely analogous regional consortium structure under the same national programme.
• NEACO (North East Access Consortium): Consortium of North East universities coordinating widening-participation outreach to schools and colleges. Direct structural analogue as another Uni Connect regional hub with comparable in-school and on-campus programming.
• Aimhigher London: Sibling regional Aimhigher partnership delivering widening-participation outreach across London under the same national Uni Connect framework. Direct structural and operational analogue serving a different UK region.

Others

• University of Bath (Widening Participation): Individual UK university with in-house widening participation/outreach teams that fulfil OfS access and participation requirements. Comparable as an institutional actor in the widening-participation ecosystem, though competing rather than partnering with Aimhigher-style hubs.
• Office for Students: Regulator and funder of English higher education, including the Uni Connect Programme under which Aimhigher operates. Relevant as the principal funder/regulator rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/aimhigherwm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aimhigher-west-midlands

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aimhigher West Midlands