Supporting commuter students in UK higher education: opportunities toenhance policy and practice

Rebecca, Turner and Namrata, Rao and Christie, Pritchard and Oliver, Webb and Emily, Pinn and Asal, Baharloo and Harriet, Ball (2026) Supporting commuter students in UK higher education: opportunities toenhance policy and practice. Perspectives: Policy and Practice in Higher Education. ISSN 1360-3108 (Accepted for Publication)

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Abstract

Commuter students represent a significant, yet often overlooked, demographic withinEnglish higher education (HE). Historically, national policy and institutional practicehave failed to adequately acknowledge the distinct challenges they face. Using anovel participatory mapping activity and focus group discussions with 19 commuterstudents, this paper identifies how commuters are excluded by dominant models ofuniversity participation. We examine students’ interactions with campus, peers andstaff. Findings reveal how structural norms – such as attendance expectations,financial support and spatial assumptions – can marginalise learners who do notfollow the residential model. Participants described feeling peripheral to universitylife, with their legitimacy as students sometimes questioned. Nonetheless, theydemonstrated agency in navigating challenges, using commuting time and homeenvironments as productive learning spaces. We identify seven areas whereenhancements might be made. By reframing commuting not as a deficit, but a validmode of engagement, institutions might better support underrepresented studentsand promote equity in HE.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information and Comments:	© 2026 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
Keywords:	Commuter students; Higher education policy; Student belonging; Inclusive practice
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Education and Social Sciences > School of Education
Depositing User:	Namrata Rao
Date Deposited:	01 May 2026 13:06
Last Modified:	01 May 2026 13:06
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4888

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