Students at the Stephen Longfellow Academy were given the opportunity to take part in a visit to Leeds Beckett University on 30 June 2026. The aim of this visit was to raise aspirations around Higher Education and gain an experience of university life. This visit built upon school presentations delivered in form time called Why go to university?
Students who attended the visit were given a short presentation about Leeds Beckett University and the main courses they do. The presentation was followed by an interactive activity called the H E alphabet game; students matched alphabet letter cards to courses at the university and learned more about them. Students also completed another task called accommodation; this is where they had to plan out their room and what essential items they would need to live there.
Students were then given a tour of the campus which included: halls of residence, lecture theatres and the library. Students were even able to see the world class outdoor sports track and understand how sports performance is measured using the latest technology.
The visit was successful and students engaged very well with university ambassadors and staff. On the day students asked relevant questions such as:
How much would it cost to stay at this university? M
What degrees do you do here? L
How long does an architecture degree take? K
Feedback taken from the students showed…
60% of the students said they had not even thought about going to university before today’s visit.
80% said they were inspired by the visit and would like to go to university in the future.
100% of students said they enjoyed at least one of the three activities set up by the university on the day.
80% said they enjoyed the visit to Leeds Beckett University
100% of the students said they would recommend the visit to other students at TSLA.
Feedback from Leeds Beckett University facilitator
“We were delighted to host Stephen Longfellow on campus today.
The student ambassador team and I were really impressed by the behaviour and engagement of the Stephen Longfellow pupils throughout the visit. All of the pupils were respectful to both staff and student ambassadors, asking thoughtful and insightful questions about university and higher education.
It was clear that the pupils had considered their future options. They demonstrated a good understanding of different subject areas, as well as alternative pathways such as apprenticeships and the range of career opportunities available to them.
During the campus tour, pupils continued to ask relevant questions and were respectful of our campus and the wider university community. We would be delighted to welcome more visits from Stephen Longfellow in the future, and we felt that the pupils who visited today were fantastic ambassadors for their school.”
Sarah Thomas (Access and Widening Participation Manager- LBU)
The Stephen Longfellow Academy will continue to work with Leeds Beckett University to support its students to gain knowledge and experience about Higher Education, raising their aspirations for the future.
Raj Gill (Director of Careers)
