Education minister Malcolm Wicks (below) has urged universities to offer more innovative and flexible programmes of study "tailored to today's inclusive society".
Speaking at the Universities Association of Continuing Education conference at Royal Holloway College, London, Mr Wicks said that the method of study in universities was itself a barrier to widening participation.
He also urged universities to be flexible with the 5 per cent funding premium given to reward the recruitment of students from deprived areas.