A LANDMARK agreement to work together to tackle inequalities across Glasgow has been signed by council chiefs and the city’s leading universities and colleges.

The new memorandum of understanding will see Glasgow City Council work with partners in higher and further education to ensure policies which seek to tackle poverty are backed by the best available evidence.

The partnership will also seek to improve access for young people from disadvantaged areas to get to college or university.

The memorandum has been signed by Susan Aitken, leader of the council, and representatives from the universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde and Glasgow Caledonian.

It has also been backed by City of Glasgow College, Glasgow Clyde College, Glasgow Kelvin College, the Glasgow School of Art, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, the Open University and the Glasgow Colleges Regional Board.

Mrs Aitken described the signing as a ground-breaking relationship “between town and gown” where partners would work across traditional boundaries.

She said: “This agreement creates a partnership of real depth between town and gown in Glasgow, one which will enhance and enrich the policy-making process.

“It is a historic agreement, bringing us much closer together with the remarkable breadth and depth of Glasgow’s academic sector.

“The agreement provides the base for all its signatories to assert our civic commitment, to work across our boundaries to make a better Glasgow, whether at the highest level of building international links and attracting inward investment, or right down to local issues of inclusivity, such as bringing young people from challenged communities into our learning institutions.”

Professor Neal Juster, a senior vice-principal at Glasgow University, added: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with the city to ensure policy is based on the best possible evidence and advice.

“Our universities and colleges have a fantastic range of expertise which the city can benefit from in areas like innovation, inclusive growth, housing and public health.

“As a university and as a wider sector, we are determined to play a full and active role in the public life of the city, recognising that when the Glasgow prospers, so do our academic institutions.”