The Relaxed Graduation Ceremony won a 2026 Making a Difference Award in the Outstanding contribution to equality, diversity and inclusion category. The Making a Difference Awards celebrate people and projects driving positive change across the University. Beyond celebration, they help share good practice and encourage others to learn from approaches that are making a meaningful difference. 

As part of this, we are taking a closer look at this year’s winners. 

What is the Relaxed Graduation Ceremony? 

The Relaxed Graduation Ceremony offers an alternative way for students to celebrate their achievements in a setting designed to make a traditional ceremony more accessible. It includes a smaller cohort of graduates, a quieter atmosphere, inclusive design elements and a dedicated Quiet Room, followed by an informal reception. 

Graduation should be a celebration for students, but for many people the format can feel overwhelming. The relaxed ceremony was designed to ask a different question: what would make graduation feel accessible? 

What inspired the project? 

The idea began with student advocacy. Katie Jackson, who was a sabbatical officer at the University of Manchester Students’ Union from 2023 to 2025 raised the idea with senior University leaders and taking it through Union Assembly, students voted to support the proposal, giving the project a clear mandate. 

Kai Prince, a part-time PhD student in mathematics and advocate for disability and neurodiversity, also became involved to help gather feedback from disabled students. For Kai, it was important that disabled students were not only asked for views through surveys or focus groups but were part of ongoing decision making. He shared feedback from student networks, including disabled postgraduate researcher groups and student communities, helping the team understand a wider range of accessibility needs. 

This helped the team challenge assumptions about traditional ceremonies and recognise that access needs are varied and personal. Kai highlighted the importance of involving students with different access needs to ensure practical decisions, including stage and ramp access, were properly informed. This continued feedback loop helped the team refine the ceremony as plans developed. 

What impact has the project had? 

For Katie and Kai, the most meaningful impact has been knowing that some students who may not have attended a traditional ceremony were still able to celebrate their degree. 

The ceremony has also shown the value of designing access in a way that is open and inclusive. To increase participation the project was not restricted only to students with a formal diagnosis or existing support pathway. By advertising the ceremony to all students, the project avoided placing the burden on individuals to prove they needed support, while still improving access for disabled and neurodivergent students. 

While the Relaxed Graduation Ceremony has already made a significant difference, Katie and Kai are keen for the impact to continue to grow. They hope to see accessible graduation options continue to develop, including consideration of how similar opportunities could be offered all year round. 

What does winning a Making a Difference Award mean? 

When asked what winning a Making a Difference award meant, Kai said; the award brings important visibility to accessibility work. He hopes that public recognition will show prospective students that the University is committed to supporting disabled students, while also encouraging other disability-focused projects to be seen and valued. 

Katie also hopes the award will encourage others to think differently about inclusion and recognise that change can happen when students are given the platform to share ideas. She reflected that the project involved many people, and that recognition through the Making a Difference Awards is a valuable way to celebrate collective work while inspiring future action.