Seren Network

The Seren Network is a set of eleven regional hubs in Wales to help sixth-formers in Welsh state schools to get into Russell Group universities.

As a result, the politician Paul Murphy MP, who had studied history at Oriel College, Oxford, was asked by Education Secretary Leighton Andrews to become Wales's "Oxbridge Ambassador" and produce a report on the issue in 2013.

His team included seconded staff from both universities and their work involved comparing admissions between Wales and North East England.

[3] It consisted of 11 hubs,[2] targeting not only Oxbridge but also more broadly the Russell Group and Sutton Trust 30 leading UK Universities,[10] as well as institutions abroad such as Yale and Harvard.

It lasted for four days in August, with College Principal Nigel Shadbolt saying "This new initiative will help ensure that we continue to welcome future generations of talented Welsh students here in Oxford.

However, the network has been criticised by Plaid Cymru's Siân Gwenllian for not focusing on higher education "institutions here in Wales,"[22] and by the Conservative Party's Angela Burns as an "easy alternative" to the "unapologetic drive to raise exam performance" she felt was needed.

[24] Education Secretary Kirsty Williams stated that the report demonstrated "considerable early success," but Government World magazine noted recommendations that the network become more consistent across Wales and be extended to younger students.