The government has set its sights firmly on what the Education Secretary heralds as “a process of wide-scale reform in the higher education sector.” It’s a “something for something” approach: in return for helping to put the sector on a more secure financial footing, universities and other HE providers will be expected to respond actively to the government priorities set out in Bridget Phillipson’s recent letter to vice chancellors.
It’s important to recognise that this isn’t just about doing the same things better; it’s about doing things differently, in three important respects – through embracing lifelong learning, strengthening place-based strategies, and getting involved in closer partnership and collaboration.
Those institutions which are members of the LEI are already well focused on these themes; there are many others which are also going down this route, for example the 45 or more universities that have already committed to Civic University agreements. But that still leaves a significant number who are lagging behind, including some of our most academically successful universities. Having reiterated their commitment to institutional autonomy, it will be interesting to see what policy and funding levers the government will deploy to incentivise the HE sector to get on board. Given the stated aim of issuing their reform plans by next summer, we haven’t got long to wait, and the first half of 2025 is going to be a period of intensive soul-searching, debate and lobbying across the HE sector.
Labour’s top priority is widening access and improving outcomes for disadvantaged students. This isn’t just about 18-year-olds but about extending opportunities to a much wider age-range, and the letter refers to creating “a culture of lifelong learning” as well as urging the sector to make the most of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, now due to come on stream during 2026/27. This is, in our view, a much better way to frame the widening participation debate. Apart from anything else, students from disadvantaged backgrounds often prioritise getting a job to shore up household income over taking on the financial burden of a student loan or the time commitment of an undergraduate degree. Delaying entry to higher education for cost of living reasons therefore makes a lot of sense for those from lower-income families, but when the time comes they need much more support to identify and access opportunities – typically part-time - that can be fitted around their career and family responsibilities, and the LLE, although far from perfect, is an important step forward.
Engaging with this cohort links directly to the importance of place-based engagement, as most mature learners tend to be commuting students. But once again it’s not just about universities doing more to contribute to local economic growth and community wellbeing, but doing it differently, in partnership with local authorities, employers and FE colleges. This was a key theme of our recent joint report with City & Guilds, “Making Skills Work: the Path to Solving the Productivity Crisis”.
HE is delivered not only by universities and specialist providers, but also by most FE Colleges, as highlighted in our forthcoming report with the Mixed Economy Group of Colleges, “A Spotlight on College Based Higher Education”. Place-based strategies necessarily entail playing an active part in local partnership and collaboration, and working closely with FE, especially in delivering Higher Technical Qualifications, to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts. There will be an opportunity to hear directly from some of our members who have pioneered FE/HE integration at our online event “Models of Tertiary Integration” on 12th December.
Plunging more deeply into lifelong learning and place-based delivery won’t in itself solve the financial headaches affecting the HE sector. There are tough times ahead for many HE providers. The hope must be that further funding support from the government, either through higher tuition fee caps or greater direct grant funding, will follow as part of next year’s reform package, although it will be 2026/27 at the earliest before this can practically come into effect.
In the meantime, embracing lifelong learning will be a necessary, even if not sufficient, step towards HE financial sustainability in the medium to long term. For the HE sector, reform is no longer an option but an inevitability.
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