Minister for Skills appoints LSBU’s Tony Moss to new Access and Participation body
Professor Tony Moss, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education and Student Experience) at London South Bank University, has been appointed Higher Education Access and Participation Task and Finish Group member by the Minister for Skills, Baroness Jacqui Smith.
The Group, which was announced in the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper on Monday 20th October, will be chaired by Kathryn Mitchell, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive at the University of Derby. It seeks to advance fairer access and successful participation in higher education for students from disadvantaged groups and underserved areas.
Their work will play an important role in realising the ambitions set out in the White Paper to tackle wide and stubborn gaps in access and outcomes between disadvantaged groups and their peers.
The unique nature of the LSBU Group model – including London South Bank University, South Bank Colleges and South Bank Academies – enables learners to enter at any level from foundational qualifications to postgraduate study and move through clearly defined educational pathways. This removes traditional barriers between Further Education and Higher Education and ensures smoother transitions through aligned curricula and shared student-support systems.
This approach has led to success for learners. The LSBU student body is amongst the most deprived in the country with 59% coming from Index of Multiple Deprivation 1 and 2 quintiles (the top areas for deprivation). Despite this, LSBU graduates have the highest median earnings one year after graduation of similar universities in London and are ranked 17th in the entire country.
The Higher Education Access and Participation Task and Finish Group will directly report to the Minister for Skills and will produce a final report setting out their recommendations for Government in January 2027.
Paul Kett, LSBU Group CEO and LSBU Vice-Chancellor, said:
“I am delighted that Professor Tony Moss will take up this important role as a member of the Higher Education Access and Participation Task and Finish Group. Tony has demonstrated strong dedication to supporting learners from underrepresented groups across LSBU Group and the wider London region. His achievement also reflects our sector-leading approach to educational pathways and supporting vulnerable learners.”
Professor Tony Moss said:
“I am privileged to have been offered this role by the Minister for Skills. While there is still a lot of work to do on eliminating inequalities of access to higher education, there is growing evidence that with the right interventions, we can make a real difference. I look forward to working closely with colleagues from across the sector to advance fairer access and successful participation”.
Professor Tony Moss is Professor of Addictive Behaviour Science, and chairs London Uni Connect, which is part of an Office for Students-funded national collaborative outreach programme which works to support underrepresented students to access higher education.