Government

UK economy ‘could benefit from more going to university’

Universities UK says educating people of all ages would help to meet economic challenges Full article below via the link here: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/aug/06/uk-economy-could-benefit-from-more-going-to-university Comment on and exerts from the article here: Ray Brogden, COO of Qualifi Awarding would like to point out Vocationally Related Qualifications, including those at HE levels in addition to those listed below, […]

Lords criticise ‘unfair’ university fees and loans

The tuition fee system for England’s universities is ripping off students and giving taxpayers poor value for money, says a parliamentary committee. The House of Lords economic affairs committee attacked a “deeply unfair” system of fees and loans. Committee chairman and former Conservative minister, Lord Forsyth, said they had also been “quite astonished by the […]

Quarter of all UK undergraduates are commuter students

Research by The Sutton Trust charity based on data from all students in the UK shows around a quarter of all undergraduates are commuter students. The cost of going to university further away is identified as one of the main reasons for choosing to be a commuter student. Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust, said: […]

Value for Money in Higher Education Debate

http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/59041300-32b4-4bed-b6c3-ce7d02982105 An interesting and enlightening discussion with thought-provoking contributions from a diverse group of representatives from FE and HE organisations. Alice Barnard of the Edge Foundation provided a great deal of constructive commentary regarding the wider issues facing the sector as well as observations about its future and actions that could and should be considered […]

AoC’s response to the Prime Minister’s announcement on the post-18 education and funding review

In response to the Prime Minister’s announcement on the education and funding review, David Hughes, Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges, said: “The growth in higher education numbers and the widened access has almost exclusively been for young people taking traditional three-year undergraduate degrees. Colleges play an important part in helping young people access these […]

Tuition fees: Theresa May challenges over-priced universities

Full article here – http://www.bbc.com/news/education-43106736 Extracts below Mrs May, announcing the year-long review of student finance and university funding, will warn that the system has failed to deliver sufficient competition on price – with almost all courses being charged at the maximum £9,250 per year. Education Secretary Damian Hinds said he wants “more variety” in the level […]

Value for money in higher education: Committee launches inquiry

Qualifi Awarding Organisation awaits with interest the outcome of the next stage of the Education Committee inquiry into value for money in higher education. With just 35% of respondents believing their HE experience represented “good” or “very good” value for money and the number of students saying their university was “poor” or “very poor” value […]

AoC responds to Ofsted

Full article here – https://www.aoc.co.uk/news/aoc-responds- ofsted%E2%80%99s-annual- report Excerpts below: David Hughes, Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges, said “We agree with the Chief Inspector that action must be taken on post-16 funding. My concern going forward is that the funding cuts have made it enormously challenging to manage and lead colleges successfully. The 22% lower funding […]