The University of West London (UWL) has won the NEON Widening Access Initiative (Retention and Progression) Award for its inclusive Reading Lists initiative. The award was presented at the NEON Awards on 3 June at the Palace of Westminster.

NEON is a professional organisation supporting widening access to higher education. Its annual awards recognise both the transformational work of institutions and the achievements of students from underrepresented backgrounds.

Creating a more inclusive curriculum

UWL’s Inclusive Reading Lists (IRL) initiative is transforming reading lists into a powerful tool for equity and belonging. By requiring at least 50% of texts to be inclusive, by authorship and/or content, the initiative helps diversify the curriculum and better reflects students’ identities and experiences.

Delivered across the University since 2020/21, the evidence-informed project has contributed to helping to narrow the ethnicity degree-awarding gap. Rigorous evaluation from UWL’s Strategic Planning team showed 5% higher module grades for Black and Minoritised Ethnic students in modules with high IRL scores compared to modules with lower IRL scores, contributing to a 12% ethnicity degree awarding gap reduction (from 20% in 2020/21 to 8% in 2024/25), one of the strongest national improvements in closing this gap. 

Collaborative approach

Inclusive reading lists are created through close collaboration between Library Services and academic colleagues, with both parties having a shared commitment to researching new titles for the lists and embedding these into student learning.

UWL is passionate about ensuring its library’s collection includes books written by authors from underrepresented backgrounds, bringing this diversity to our students.

Part of a wider commitment

The IRL initiative is one part of a bigger picture of ensuring that modules and courses are interesting, informative, inclusive and designed with the student and industry at the heart of them.

Davina Omar, Director of Library Services, said:

“We are so proud that the work we have been leading in the library has had a positive impact for our students. The project has involved researching over 6,800 unique books and working with colleagues across the University to begin to create more inclusive reading lists for our students.  We remain committed to ensuring inclusivity is at the heart of the library’s work.”