Mayor’s scholarship fund raises over £10,000 for local university students

An annual scholarship fund set up by a former Wolverhampton Mayor to help local University Students has raised over £10,000.

In May 2019, an alumni of the University, Claire Darke, became Mayor of Wolverhampton and created The Alumni Mayoral Scholarship at the University of Wolverhampton. Each year the scholarship will enable up to five students who come from Wolverhampton and study at the University to receive financial assistance to help them with their studies.

The cheque, for £10,063, was officially presented to the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Geoff Layer, by Councillor Darke following two years of fundraising while she was in office. The current Mayor, Councillor Greg Brackenridge, was also in attendance alongside the University’s Deputy Vice- Chancellor (Student Experience), Professor Julia Clarke.

The money raised will be used to award the first scholarships in the 2022 / 2023 academic year.

Claire Tilt, Head of Alumni and Development at the University, said: “The majority of students at the University of Wolverhampton are local and almost 80% of the 20,000 students who study at the University come from within 25 miles of the city centre. Around 4,500 of those who graduate each year remain around the city and contribute to the local economy.

“We were absolutely delighted that the Mayor wanted to offer support through her charity fundraising efforts. She created the Alumni Mayoral Scholarship to help disadvantaged students from Wolverhampton succeed in their studies and this scholarship fund has become doubly important in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic with many students under increased financial pressure.

“The University will continue fundraising to ensure scholarships will continue to be awarded in future years as we want to encourage as many students from Wolverhampton as possible to achieve their goals.”

Councillor Darke said: “The outpouring of generosity to our extended charitable appeal during 2019 and 2020 has been incredible. I’m grateful to everyone involved in the fundraising efforts and presenting the scholarship funds to the University. I’m looking forward to meeting the first scholarship recipients and hearing all about their studies.

“It’s wonderful that we have collectively been able to make a difference to the lives of the next generation of talented students from Wolverhampton.”

Mayor Brackenridge and former Mayor Darke also presented a cheque for £10,063 to the City of Wolverhampton Suicide Prevention Forum, chaired by the University’s academic lead in Mental Health, Clare Dickens.

Anyone can make a donation to the Mayoral Scholarship Fund by following this link: https://www.wlv.ac.uk/alumni/make-a-donation/mayoral-scholarship/

Anyone looking to study at the University of Wolverhampton should register for one of our forthcoming Open Days.

Picture caption from left to right: David Wedge (Alumni Manager at the University), Councillor Greg Brackenridge (Mayor of Wolverhampton), Professor Julia Clarke (Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University), Professor Geoff Layer (Vice-Chancellor at the University), Terry Gibson (Development Manager at the University), Councillor Claire Darke (former Mayor of Wolverhampton) and Claire Tilt (Head of Alumni at the University).

ENDS