We, the undersigned students, graduates, staff, and supporters, call upon Glasgow Caledonian University to protect the Care Experienced and Estranged Student Team and the dedicated Name Contact roles that support some of the university’s most vulnerable students.

For care-experienced and estranged students, this team is far more than a student service. They are often our advocates, our mentors, our emergency support, our guidance, and, for some students, the only consistent support system we have.

There appears to be a belief that other university services could replace this team. They cannot.

The Care Experienced and Estranged Student Team provides specialist support that is unique to the challenges faced by students who have grown up in care or without family support. Their understanding, experience, and relationships with students cannot simply be transferred elsewhere.

Many of us would not be at university today without this team.

Many of us would not have completed our first year, progressed through our studies, or continued during difficult periods without their support. Their work directly contributes to student retention, wellbeing, achievement, and graduation.

Removing these roles risks undoing years of progress in widening access and supporting care-experienced and estranged students.

We fear that if these positions are lost, Glasgow Caledonian University could see:

Fewer care-experienced and estranged students applying to GCU.
Lower retention rates among current students.
Increased student withdrawals and dropouts.
Reduced graduation rates.
A significant loss of trust from a community that relies on this specialist support.
Perhaps most concerning is that the students most affected by these proposed changes have not been meaningfully consulted. The voices of care-experienced and estranged students must be heard before decisions are made about services that have such a profound impact on our lives.

We ask Glasgow Caledonian University to:

Protect the Care Experienced and Estranged Student Team and Name Contact roles.
Consult directly with care-experienced and estranged students before any decisions are made.
Publish an assessment of the impact these changes would have on student retention, wellbeing, and success.
Demonstrate a continued commitment to supporting care-experienced and estranged students.
This team changes lives.

For many students, they are not simply a university service. They are the reason we remained in education, the reason we believed we belonged at university, and the reason we continue to succeed today.

We urge Glasgow Caledonian University to listen to the students whose lives have been shaped by this support and to protect these vital roles.