By Professor Sir Peter Scott, Commissioner for Fair Access

THE latest figures on the proportion of people from deprived areas entering Scotland’s universities suggest that the Government’s first interim target on fair access has almost been met – four years in advance.

They show that 15.6 per cent of full-time first degree entrants in 2017/18 came from the 20 per cent most deprived areas, just short of the 16 per cent target for 2021. By 2030 the aim is to have a truly level playing field – 20 per cent of entrants from the 20 per cent most deprived areas. If that target too is met, it will be a historic achievement.

What makes the latest figures particularly encouraging is that they follow three years when there was little improvement in the proportion of full-time first degree students from the most deprived areas. This led some critics of the Government’s red-line policy of free higher education to argue that England was doing more for fair access despite charging students high fees.

The latest figures vindicate Scotland’s policy of free higher education, which of course has other aims apart from making universities more socially inclusive – not least the commitment that higher education should be seen as a public good from which society as a whole benefits and not just as a private investment producing higher earnings for individuals.

In any case the English policy of high fees, mitigated by bursaries for poorer students, is now collapsing because it is so expensive not just for students who graduate with tens of thousands of pounds of debt, but also for taxpayers, who have to fund student loans in the first place, many of which will never be paid back.

There are three main reasons for the good news. First is sustained political commitment within the Government from the First Minister down, a commitment shared by most political parties in Parliament. Second comes the work of the Commission on Widening Access chaired by Dame Ruth Silver which reported in 2016. This is the first year in which it would have been possible to see clear evidence of the commission’s impact.

It was the commission which recommended the fair access targets adopted by the Government. Opinions are mixed about targets in general. Some people believe that, to adapt a famous resolution in the House of Commons during the American War of Independence about the powers of the Crown, the use of targets “has increased, is increasing and ought to be diminished”. But these targets are proving their worth.

The third reason for the success in increasing the number of students from more deprived areas into higher education is the commitment of the institutions themselves. The colleges, of course, had nothing to prove about their commitment to fair access. So did most, although not all, “post-1992” universities like Glasgow Caledonian and the University of the West of Scotland.

But what has been impressive has been the commitment of the traditional, including the ancient, universities. Dundee, Strathclyde, Glasgow and Stirling have been performing as well as many “post-1992” universities. The principals of St Andrews and Edinburgh have demonstrated a personal commitment and leadership that matches that of ministers.

Of course, it is dangerous to be complacent. The last few miles can be the most difficult. The gap in school attainment remains a challenge. Students from more deprived areas are still over-concentrated in particular institutions. Not all disadvantaged young people live in the most deprived areas. Other forms of discrimination have to be tackled. In particular opportunities for older and part-time students need to be improved.

But there is no harm celebrating hopeful social progress, especially perhaps in the dark days of Brexit.