Higher education

Higher education
Author: Great Britain: Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Total Pages: 88
Release: 2011-06-28
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9780101812221

This White Paper sets out the government's policies for the reform of higher education. The reforms seek to tackle three challenges (i) Putting higher education on a sustainable footing; (ii) Seeking to deliver a better student experience - that is, improvements in teaching, assessment, feedback and preparing the student for the world of work; (iii) Pushing for higher education institutions to take more responsibility for increasing social mobility. The Paper is divided into six chapters, with an annex. Chapter 1: Sustainable and fair funding; Chapter 2: Well-informed students driving teaching excellence; Chapter 3: A better student experience and better-qualified graduates; Chapter 4: A diverse and responsive sector; Chapter 5: Improved social mobility through fairer access; Chapter 6: A new, fit-for-purpose regulatory framework. By shifting public spending away from teaching grants and towards repayable tuition loans, the government believes higher education will receive the funding it needs whilst making savings on public expenditure. The reforms aim to deliver a more responsive higher education sector in which funding follows the decisions of learners and successful institutions are freed to thrive. Also, creating an environment in which there is a new focus on the student experience and the quality of teaching and in which further education colleges and other alternative providers are encouraged to offer a diverse range of higher education provision. The Government, through the Office for Fair Access (OFFA), will be introducing a National Scholarship Programme and will also increase maintenance grants and loans for nearly all students. New Technology Innovation Centres will also be rolled out followed by publication of an innovation and research strategy, exploring the roles of knowledge creation, business investment, skills and training.

Regulating financial stability in higher education

Regulating financial stability in higher education
Author: Great Britain: National Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Total Pages: 40
Release: 2011-03-04
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9780102969535

The Higher Education Funding Council for England, the funder and regulator of the higher education sector, has overseen the financial sustainability of the sector through a period of growth in income and student numbers. It has taken a cost-efficient approach and delivered value for money in the context in which it has operated to date. However, the sector is facing a period of transition to a very different financial environment with an increased level of risk. The Council has contained the cost of its own regulatory activities and minimised the burden of its activities on higher education institutions. It has focused on supporting those institutions at highest risk, whilst managing to maintain the confidence of the sector. There is a wide variation in the financial performance of institutions. The Council's current assessment of financial sustainability of institutions provides effective coverage of medium-term risks but methods of detecting short term risks need reinforcing. The Council does not routinely publish its assessments of individual institutions as part of its annual assessment of risk within the sector, and delays its naming of "at higher risk" institutions by at least three years to give them time to rectify their problems. Even so, some institutions in difficulty can take a long time to resolve their weaknesses. But the Council needs to consider the balance between protecting institutions and their students and enabling prospective students to take more informed decisions on where to study.

Staying the course

Staying the course
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Total Pages: 64
Release: 2008-02-20
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9780215513694

Around 28,000 full-time and 87,000 part-time students who started first-degree courses in 2004-05 were no longer in higher education a year later. There has been little improvement in student retention since 2001-02, though participation in higher education has increased from around 40 per cent to nearly 43 per cent of 18-30 year olds. Universities have received around £800 million over the last five years to help improve retention and participation. In 2001-02 the Committee concluded (HC 588, ISBN 9780215005496) that there was a need for improvement in several areas: reducing the wide variation in retention rates; funding to support students from low-income backgrounds; tackling skills gaps; supporting disabled students; better information. The Committee's findings in this report include: there has been no reduction in the variation in retention rates; by widening participation in higher education, higher education institutions need to understand the needs of their changing student populations through the use of market research techniques; the Higher Education Funding Council for England should agree clear expectations for planned improvements in retention of students and make it part of any improvement plans; that only about half of part-time students obtain a qualification within six years and there is no specific framework to encourage improvement; that some students feel that academic and pastoral support is limited and does not meet their needs; information on why students withdraw from their courses is not reliable; substantial variations exist between universities in the proportions of students with disabilities that receive the Disabled Student's Allowances.

Managing External Relations in Schools and Colleges

Managing External Relations in Schools and Colleges
Author: Jacky Lumby
Publisher: SAGE
Total Pages: 249
Release: 1999-05-26
Genre: Education
ISBN: 144626520X

`I was pleased to find that the work lived up to its title and covered both schools and college issues with equal thoroughness. This is a very readable, stimulating and valuable publication′ - Mentoring & Tutoring This book explores all the major aspects of managing external relations in schools of all phases, as well as in colleges. The authors use empirical research evidence to analyze how schools and colleges can manage external relations to achieve productive and supportive relationships with their communities. They explore how a responsive philosophy and appropriate marketing can be adopted in order to ensure continuous development.