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Select Committee · Public Accounts Committee

Control over funding for alternative higher education bodies

Status: Closed Opened: 24 Feb 2015 Closed: 26 Mar 2015 1 report
Inquiry scopeAround 670 institutions offering higher education do not receive direct funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). Approximately 140 of these are alternative providers, organisations ranging from private companies to charitable institutions that receive substantial public funding through student support. Following higher education reforms in 2011, there has been substantial growth in the sector. Between 2010/11 and 2013/14, the number of students claiming support for courses at alternative providers rose from 7,000 to 53,000. A number of concerns have been raised by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the media about the oversight and funding of alternative higher education providers and the financial support provided to students attending some of these providers. This inquiry will assess the effectiveness of the changes to oversight of alternative providers following the reforms and rapid growth of the sector; examine whether BIS and its partner organisations have done enough to address risks and protect taxpayers’ money in providing oversight of the alternative provider sector; and the impact that BIS’s approach has had on students and on the alternative providers in the sector who have acted with propriety. Further information National Audit Office report: Investigation into financial support for students at alternative higher education providers Chair's statement: Financial support for higher education

Reports

1 report

Oral evidence sessions

1 session

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Date Session and witnesses Source
15 Dec 2014 No witnesses recorded View ↗