Prison reformer Lady Edwina Grosvenor supports scholarships for students with lived experience of the criminal justice system
A first-of-its-kind scholarship programme to help young people with lived experience of the criminal justice system to pursue higher education is being launched at Manchester Metropolitan University with the support of pioneering justice system reformer Lady Edwina Grosvenor.
The Lady Edwina Grosvenor Scholarships, the first such scholarships to be offered to undergraduate students in the UK, will support young people with experience of the criminal justice system to break down barriers and enter higher education, also offering any additional support and guidance they may need.
Research shows that young people with lived experience of the criminal justice system, including those whose parents or guardians have spent time in prison, have some of the worst educational outcomes of any social group in the country, with students less likely to attend and succeed at university than their peers.
Once enrolled at university, these students are at greater risk of withdrawing from their degree, so the new scholarships will also offer dedicated support for the recipients for the duration of their studies.
In addition to this tailored support from a dedicated staff member, the nine undergraduate scholarships will provide financial support for the recipients for the duration of their studies.
The scholarships will be available for all subject areas, with a particular emphasis on Sociology and Criminology. This focus aims to nurture future policymakers who can drive systemic change informed by their lived experiences.
Professor Julie Scott Jones, Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor for the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at Manchester Met, said: “The Lady Edwina Grosvenor Scholarships are an exciting and important way to improve access to higher education for people whose lives have been impacted by the criminal justice system.
“There is currently little additional support for those who have lived through this system, yet such an experience in the formative years of someone’s life can have a long-term impact on them as an individual.
“At Manchester Met, many of our students who have experience of the justice or care system go on to work in this field, driven by the desire to improve the system for others. Not only will these scholarships provide access to higher education, they have the potential to influence UK-wide policy by creating a pipeline of change-makers who actually understand how the system affects young people like them.”
Lady Edwina Grosvenor is a leading criminologist and philanthropist who is the founder and chair of One Small Thing, an organisation that aims to redesign the justice system for women and their children. Through her justice system reform work, she aims to pioneer a new approach to working with justice-involved women, offering a healing, trauma-informed residential environment with a range of specialist support.
Lady Edwina Grosvenor said: “I am incredibly excited to work with Manchester Met in its efforts to identify and support talented students, regardless of their background. Young people with experience of the criminal justice system, many of whom have experienced trauma, have some of the worst educational and life outcomes of this social group. This needs to change.
“This new scholarship programme, combined with additional dedicated pastoral support, will help realise potential that might otherwise have gone unfulfilled. It is wonderful to partner with such a forward-thinking institution with such a committed and innovative approach to supporting the next generation.”
This latest partnership continues the Grosvenor family’s long-held links with Manchester Met, following the role of Lady Edwina’s late father, Gerald Grosvenor, the 6th Duke of Westminster, as the first Chancellor of Manchester Met from 1992 to 2005.
It also follows Lady Edwina’s recent high-profile work with the University, including a public lecture and debate about the UK prison crisis and her visit as part of celebrations for the institution’s 200 year anniversary.
Professor Malcolm Press CBE DL, Vice-Chancellor of Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Lady Edwina, who shares our commitment to social justice and tackling inequalities, to offer such an important scholarship programme. Manchester Met has inclusivity at its heart, so it is fitting that we are the first university to offer such a scholarship to undergraduates.
“The experiences young people have had should be no barrier to their future success in life, and the Lady Edwina Grosvenor Scholarships will provide the opportunity and support to ensure the talents of these young people can reach their full potential.”
The new scholarships will sit alongside a suite of donor-funded bursaries, prizes and other scholarships the University currently offers to students from a range of underrepresented and less advantaged backgrounds. More than 600 talented students at Manchester Met are currently helped in this way thanks to the generosity of the University’s friends and supporters.
The first recipients of the Lady Edwina Grosvenor Scholarships will begin their studies in September 2026.
