Santander pledges support for Leeds students

Santander, a long-time supporter of the University, has pledged a further three-year package of funding of student support worth £155,000 a year.

The new agreement was launched during a recent visit to the University by the Director of Santander Universities in the UK Luis Juste. During the course of the day he met the Vice-Chancellor Michael Arthur, together with students who have benefited from Santander funding and University staff involved in the partnership.

The new agreement will fund a number of initiatives to support students, including scholarships, travel awards, Spanish Summer School, Intercultural Ambassadors, the LeedsforLife Foundation, a social responsibility volunteering project and the Enterprise Exchange. It will also fund financial literacy outreach with local schools

The funding was originally for £130,000 but on the day of the launch, Luis Juste surprised the Vice-Chancellor during at a private meeting by providing an additional £25,000 for scholarships. Last year Santander also provided the University with a one-off payment of £47,000 for scholarships which will be used to use to support current students from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Welcoming the Santander delegation to the University, the Vice-Chancellor said: "I am thankful to Santander for offering this ongoing support and I am also grateful to staff at the University who have delivered such a successful programme so far and laid strong foundations for our growing partnership."

Leeds was one of the first UK higher education institutions to join Santander Universities. During the past three years of the University's partnership with Santander:

  • 280 students and staff have directly benefited from Santander supported programmes
  • 11 projects have been developed as part of the agreement
  • 97 students have received travel awards
  • 17 students from Latin America have received generous scholarships to undertake postgraduate study at the University.

Further details about the University's partnership with Santander can be found in a special brochure which was produced for the visit.

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