Mathematics in Education and Industry’s (MEI) Gatsby-funded pilot project ‘Enabling Access to Further Mathematics’ which ran from 2000 to 2005 [1] showed that it was possible to make Further Mathematics tuition available to all students even when it could not be offered directly by a student’s own school or college. As part of its response to the Smith Inquiry Report ‘Making Mathematics Count’ [2] the DfES is now funding MEI to set up and manage a national ‘Further Mathematics Network’ modelled on this pilot.
The Further Mathematics Network (FM Network) is now making it possible for suitable sixth formers across England to study Further Mathematics and is helping to promote mathematics widely in schools and colleges. Universities now have a major role to play in ensuring it fulfils its potential to improve standards in pre-university mathematics and encourage more students to take Mathematics and strongly mathematics-related degrees.
