How access to higher education drives economic resilience and civic wellbeing | Letter

I was pleased to read that the evidence is still incredibly strong that most graduates earn more than those without a degree, as pointed out in your editorial ( The Guardian view on universities: public confidence in degrees is wavering – ministers should shore it up, 28 June ). But the debate on earnings often overlooks a crucial point – widening access is one of the most effective levers for improving regional productivity and strengthening the national economy. At the University of Northampton , our most recent assessment shows that we generate £366m of “gross value added”, a measure of economic activity similar to GDP, locally, rising to £823m nationally – more than £4 returned for every £1 of income. With the higher-education sector generating £52.3bn of income, any large-scale losses would first and foremost hit the public purse as well as further compound this country’s significant productivity problem. Access also translates into employability. More than half of our graduates enter full‑time roles in the NHS and education. Each year, thousands of our students undertake placements in local hospitals, GP surgeries and schools, over 600,000 hours in fact – experiences that many Northamptonshire residents recognise personally, whether through a trainee teacher in their family member’s classroom or a student nurse on a loved one’s ward. …