Asked by: Lord Stevens of Birmingham (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the Office for National Statistics will conclude its review of the classification of universities in the National Accounts, first announced in January 2017.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.
The Office for National Statistics is not responsible for making an assessment of the non-statistical impacts of classification decisions. Therefore, no such assessment has been made of other consequences.
The Lord Stevens of Birmingham
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
19 January 2024
Dear Lord Stevens of Birmingham,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Questions asking when the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will conclude its review of the classification of universities in the National Accounts, first announced in January 2017 (HL1604). And further to the classification review of universities announced by the ONS in January 2017, what assessment we have made of the (1) fiscal, and (2) other, consequences of universities being reclassified as public bodies as a result of that review (HL1606).
The ONS regularly reviews legislation and guidance relating to a number of institutions, including universities, to determine whether any changes would have a potential impact on their sector classification. As such, the classification review of universities in the UK, first announced on 31 January 2017 [1] will consider whether the substantial rise in tuition fees from 2012, and other changes in funding arrangements affect the classification of universities.
A further statement on the classification review of universities in the UK was released on 5 April 2018 [2]. This statement explained that the classification review had been paused because of the announcement of the review of post-18 education and funding, which raised the possibility that the cap for tuition fees may be altered. As this could affect the classification status of individual universities, the statement confirmed the classification review would recommence when there is more certainty in this area.
It was necessary to further postpone the classification review of universities in the UK due to new higher priority classification cases, such as support schemes initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and more recently, the energy support schemes introduced in 2022 and 2023.
At present, the ONS plans to begin the classification review of universities in the UK from Quarter 2 (April – June) 2024. However, classification priorities can change quickly, and the expected dates of completion are only indicative. Our forward work plan 3 is updated each month to reflect changes in priorities. Table 1 shows the expected timetable for the classification review.
Table 1: Expected timetable for the classification review of universities [3]
Name of case | Expected date of completion |
Universities (Scotland) | Quarter 2 (Apr to Jun) 2024 |
Universities (Northern Ireland) | Quarter 3 (Jul to Sep) 2024 |
Universities (Wales) | Quarter 3 (Jul to Sep) 2024 |
Universities (England) | Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2025 |
Source: Forward Work Plan December 2023 (19 December 2023)
The ONS has not yet made an assessment of the fiscal consequences of universities being reclassified as public bodies. Within our forward work plan, for each of the four cases involved, we have provided an indication that the impact on fiscal aggregates could be small (less than £100 million change).
The ONS is not responsible for making an assessment of the non-statistical impacts of classification decisions. Therefore, no such assessment has been made of other consequences.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
[1] Classification review of universities in the UK - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)
[3] Economic statistics sector classification – Forward Work Plan dataset (XLSX, 128KB)
Asked by: Lord Stevens of Birmingham (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the classification review of universities announced by the Office for National Statistics in January 2017, what assessment they have made of the (1) fiscal, and (2) other, consequences of universities being reclassified as public bodies as a result of that review.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.
The Office for National Statistics is not responsible for making an assessment of the non-statistical impacts of classification decisions. Therefore, no such assessment has been made of other consequences.
The Lord Stevens of Birmingham
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
19 January 2024
Dear Lord Stevens of Birmingham,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Questions asking when the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will conclude its review of the classification of universities in the National Accounts, first announced in January 2017 (HL1604). And further to the classification review of universities announced by the ONS in January 2017, what assessment we have made of the (1) fiscal, and (2) other, consequences of universities being reclassified as public bodies as a result of that review (HL1606).
The ONS regularly reviews legislation and guidance relating to a number of institutions, including universities, to determine whether any changes would have a potential impact on their sector classification. As such, the classification review of universities in the UK, first announced on 31 January 2017 [1] will consider whether the substantial rise in tuition fees from 2012, and other changes in funding arrangements affect the classification of universities.
A further statement on the classification review of universities in the UK was released on 5 April 2018 [2]. This statement explained that the classification review had been paused because of the announcement of the review of post-18 education and funding, which raised the possibility that the cap for tuition fees may be altered. As this could affect the classification status of individual universities, the statement confirmed the classification review would recommence when there is more certainty in this area.
It was necessary to further postpone the classification review of universities in the UK due to new higher priority classification cases, such as support schemes initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and more recently, the energy support schemes introduced in 2022 and 2023.
At present, the ONS plans to begin the classification review of universities in the UK from Quarter 2 (April – June) 2024. However, classification priorities can change quickly, and the expected dates of completion are only indicative. Our forward work plan 3 is updated each month to reflect changes in priorities. Table 1 shows the expected timetable for the classification review.
Table 1: Expected timetable for the classification review of universities [3]
Name of case | Expected date of completion |
Universities (Scotland) | Quarter 2 (Apr to Jun) 2024 |
Universities (Northern Ireland) | Quarter 3 (Jul to Sep) 2024 |
Universities (Wales) | Quarter 3 (Jul to Sep) 2024 |
Universities (England) | Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2025 |
Source: Forward Work Plan December 2023 (19 December 2023)
The ONS has not yet made an assessment of the fiscal consequences of universities being reclassified as public bodies. Within our forward work plan, for each of the four cases involved, we have provided an indication that the impact on fiscal aggregates could be small (less than £100 million change).
The ONS is not responsible for making an assessment of the non-statistical impacts of classification decisions. Therefore, no such assessment has been made of other consequences.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
[1] Classification review of universities in the UK - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)
[3] Economic statistics sector classification – Forward Work Plan dataset (XLSX, 128KB)
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the impact assessment for the Government’s reforms to loan repayments, published in February 2022 and the House of Commons Library briefing entitled The Post-18 Education and Funding Review: Government conclusion, section 4.1, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for its policies of disparities in student loan repayments of the (a) average total loan charge and (b) time spent repaying loans between male and female borrowers.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department has carefully assessed the impact of changes and published a full and comprehensive analysis in the HE Reform and Consultation Document Equality Impact Assessment, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reform-equality-impact-assessment.
The student loan repayment system under Plan 5 is progressive, with repayments being positively correlated with lifetime earnings. The highest earners make the largest individual contributions to the system overall, and the lowest earners are required to contribute the least.
Lower earners, whether male or female, are protected. If a borrower’s income is below the repayment threshold, they will not be required to make any repayments at all. At the end of the loan term, any outstanding loan debt, including interest accrued, will be written off at no detriment to the borrower. No commercial loans offer this level of protection.
The department will continue to keep the student finance system, including repayment terms, under review to ensure that it remains sustainable and delivers value for money for students and the taxpayer.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions to university mathematics departments budgets on the UK’s ambition to become a global science and technology superpower by 2030.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Higher education (HE) providers are independent, autonomous institutions, responsible for their own decisions on staffing issues, including how they structure themselves to deliver research and teaching priorities. Where it is necessary to reshape their activities, it is important that universities carefully consider the impact of job losses on staff and students, and the overall sustainability of teaching and research in this country.
The department will continue to work closely with the Office for Students (OfS) and various parties, including a variety of HE providers across the sector, mission groups and other government departments, to understand the ongoing impacts and changing landscape of financial sustainability in the HE sector.
We want to provide a ladder of opportunity for everyone to get the education and skills they need for job security and prosperity and to support levelling up across the country. Access to HE should be based on a student’s attainment and their ability to succeed, rather than background.
The government has issued guidance to the OfS, asking it to refocus the entire access and participation regime to create a system that supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by ensuring students are able to make the right choices and to access and succeed on high quality courses that are valued by employers and lead to good graduate employment.
John Blake, as the Director for Fair Access and Participation, is driving forward this important change. Using his experience and expertise from the schools’ sector, he is supporting and challenging HE providers to identify what will ultimately help students progress on their course and obtain good outcomes from their degree, such as programmes of intervention in schools, summer schools, and targeted bursaries to assist with living costs.
The government is committed to cementing the UK’s status as a science and technology superpower, levelling up across the country.
To achieve this, the UK needs talented people with the right knowledge, skills, and experience. The department is investing in programmes that do this at all levels of education.
The Prime Minister has set a new mission for all young people to study maths to age 18, equipping them with the skills they need for the modern economy. Our driving principle is to ensure that all young people are equipped with the right maths knowledge and skills to thrive, whatever their chosen pathway.
On 17 April 2023, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Education set out how we will take the next steps towards delivering this mission. This includes:
The department is investing an additional £750 million over the three year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support high quality teaching and facilities including in science and engineering, subjects that support the NHS, and degree apprenticeships. This includes the largest increase in government funding for the HE sector to support students and teaching in over a decade.
Several government strategies are in place to support our science and technology superpower ambition, in specific areas including the 2023 Science and Technology Framework , which sets out our approach to making the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030. The 2021 National AI Strategy, and the 2022 UK Digital Strategy set out how we will strengthen our reserves of talent and skills in order to drive success.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has had discussions with representative of Birkbeck University on its proposed reductions to its Mathematics and Statistics Department.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Higher education (HE) providers are independent, autonomous institutions, responsible for their own decisions on staffing issues, including how they structure themselves to deliver research and teaching priorities. Where it is necessary to reshape their activities, it is important that universities carefully consider the impact of job losses on staff and students, and the overall sustainability of teaching and research in this country.
The department will continue to work closely with the Office for Students (OfS) and various parties, including a variety of HE providers across the sector, mission groups and other government departments, to understand the ongoing impacts and changing landscape of financial sustainability in the HE sector.
We want to provide a ladder of opportunity for everyone to get the education and skills they need for job security and prosperity and to support levelling up across the country. Access to HE should be based on a student’s attainment and their ability to succeed, rather than background.
The government has issued guidance to the OfS, asking it to refocus the entire access and participation regime to create a system that supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by ensuring students are able to make the right choices and to access and succeed on high quality courses that are valued by employers and lead to good graduate employment.
John Blake, as the Director for Fair Access and Participation, is driving forward this important change. Using his experience and expertise from the schools’ sector, he is supporting and challenging HE providers to identify what will ultimately help students progress on their course and obtain good outcomes from their degree, such as programmes of intervention in schools, summer schools, and targeted bursaries to assist with living costs.
The government is committed to cementing the UK’s status as a science and technology superpower, levelling up across the country.
To achieve this, the UK needs talented people with the right knowledge, skills, and experience. The department is investing in programmes that do this at all levels of education.
The Prime Minister has set a new mission for all young people to study maths to age 18, equipping them with the skills they need for the modern economy. Our driving principle is to ensure that all young people are equipped with the right maths knowledge and skills to thrive, whatever their chosen pathway.
On 17 April 2023, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Education set out how we will take the next steps towards delivering this mission. This includes:
The department is investing an additional £750 million over the three year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support high quality teaching and facilities including in science and engineering, subjects that support the NHS, and degree apprenticeships. This includes the largest increase in government funding for the HE sector to support students and teaching in over a decade.
Several government strategies are in place to support our science and technology superpower ambition, in specific areas including the 2023 Science and Technology Framework , which sets out our approach to making the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030. The 2021 National AI Strategy, and the 2022 UK Digital Strategy set out how we will strengthen our reserves of talent and skills in order to drive success.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of incentives to universities of ensuring that mathematics courses are widely available.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Higher education (HE) providers are independent, autonomous institutions, responsible for their own decisions on staffing issues, including how they structure themselves to deliver research and teaching priorities. Where it is necessary to reshape their activities, it is important that universities carefully consider the impact of job losses on staff and students, and the overall sustainability of teaching and research in this country.
The department will continue to work closely with the Office for Students (OfS) and various parties, including a variety of HE providers across the sector, mission groups and other government departments, to understand the ongoing impacts and changing landscape of financial sustainability in the HE sector.
We want to provide a ladder of opportunity for everyone to get the education and skills they need for job security and prosperity and to support levelling up across the country. Access to HE should be based on a student’s attainment and their ability to succeed, rather than background.
The government has issued guidance to the OfS, asking it to refocus the entire access and participation regime to create a system that supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by ensuring students are able to make the right choices and to access and succeed on high quality courses that are valued by employers and lead to good graduate employment.
John Blake, as the Director for Fair Access and Participation, is driving forward this important change. Using his experience and expertise from the schools’ sector, he is supporting and challenging HE providers to identify what will ultimately help students progress on their course and obtain good outcomes from their degree, such as programmes of intervention in schools, summer schools, and targeted bursaries to assist with living costs.
The government is committed to cementing the UK’s status as a science and technology superpower, levelling up across the country.
To achieve this, the UK needs talented people with the right knowledge, skills, and experience. The department is investing in programmes that do this at all levels of education.
The Prime Minister has set a new mission for all young people to study maths to age 18, equipping them with the skills they need for the modern economy. Our driving principle is to ensure that all young people are equipped with the right maths knowledge and skills to thrive, whatever their chosen pathway.
On 17 April 2023, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Education set out how we will take the next steps towards delivering this mission. This includes:
The department is investing an additional £750 million over the three year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support high quality teaching and facilities including in science and engineering, subjects that support the NHS, and degree apprenticeships. This includes the largest increase in government funding for the HE sector to support students and teaching in over a decade.
Several government strategies are in place to support our science and technology superpower ambition, in specific areas including the 2023 Science and Technology Framework , which sets out our approach to making the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030. The 2021 National AI Strategy, and the 2022 UK Digital Strategy set out how we will strengthen our reserves of talent and skills in order to drive success.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with (a) local authorities and (b) businesses in the North East on the decision to stop funding for Level 3 tourism qualifications by 2025.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department has embarked on an ambitious technical education reform programme. We consulted several times on the reforms to seek the views on our proposed changes. In March 2019, the government launched the first stage consultation to gather views and evidence about the principles that should apply to post-16 qualifications at level 3 and below in England. The results of this consultation are available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/928952/Review_of_post-16_qualifications_at_level_3_and_below_-_First_stage_government_response.pdf.
In July 2021, the department published its response to the second stage consultation of the review of post-16 qualifications at level 3 and below, which ran between the 23 October 2020 to 31 January 2021.The department made clear its intentions to streamline the qualifications landscape, simplify choices for students, and only fund qualifications that are high quality and lead to good progression outcomes. The response is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/review-of-post-16-qualifications-at-level-3-second-stage.
The changes to post-16 qualifications at level 3 and below are designed to ensure that our qualifications system provides a ladder of opportunity for young people from all backgrounds. The department wants as many people as possible to undertake world class A levels and T Levels, which evidence shows provide the best foundation from which to progress, either into higher education, or skilled employment.
Data shows that, in the following year, of the approximately 3,100 16-18 students who completed a level 3 qualification in Travel and Tourism in 2018/19:
This shows mixed progression outcomes for these qualifications. Specifying that newly developed travel and tourism-related qualifications must be based on employer-designed, approved occupational standards at level 3 will ensure that students gain the knowledge, skills, and behaviours employers in the travel and tourism industries need, leading to better and more consistent progression outcomes for young people.
The department will continue to fund travel and tourism qualifications at level 3 beyond 2025. Existing travel and tourism qualifications will remain funded until 31 July 2026, after which qualifications approved for funding in travel and tourism will need to be mapped against one of the relevant occupational standards at level 3 for technical qualifications. Further information can be found here: https://occupational-maps.instituteforapprenticeships.org/.
For future qualifications, the department is encouraging awarding organisations to work with schools, colleges and employers to develop new travel and tourism-focused technical qualifications at level 3 that support young people to enter employment or further technical study where that is what they want to do.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to publish the Review of Post-18 Education and Funding.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The Review of Post-18 Education and Funding was published in May 2019.
On 24 February 2022, the department published the Higher Education (HE) Reform Consultation, setting out reforms to the student loan system to put it on a fair and sustainable footing and a package of investment into the HE sector. The department also proposed a range of reforms to improve outcomes for students as a result of their courses and help them move into high-value employment.
The HE Reform Consultation closed on 6 May 2022. The department is now considering the views received and plans to publish a response to the consultation in due course.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the extent to which tuition fees for home students cover the actual costs of degree delivery across various subjects for UK universities.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The Office for Students collect and publish sector-level data on income and full economic cost by type of activity including publicly funded teaching (which relates to domestic and EU domiciled students, but not international students). The latest published data can be found here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/annual-trac-2020-21/.
As part of the 2019 Augur Review on Post-18 Education and Funding, the department commissioned and published a report by KPMG on the cost of undergraduate provision which looked at the variation in costs of teaching per student across subjects and providers. The report can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cost-of-undergraduate-higher-education-provision.
The department also published a related analytical note on subject variations in the cost of teaching an undergraduate, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-18-review-of-education-and-funding-supporting-statistics.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Level 3 applied general qualifications are currently included in the scope of his Department’s review of post-16 qualifications; and how many of those qualifications are (a) approved and (b) not approved for inclusion in performance tables.
Answered by Robert Halfon
As at August 2022, there were 5,200 qualifications approved for post-16 funding in England and in scope of the review of post-16 qualifications. This figure excludes those qualifications that the department has already confirmed will continue to be funded. 1,510 qualifications are at level 3, and 3,690 are at level 2 and below. Applied General is a level 3 qualification (AGQ) category of the aged 16-18 performance tables. There are 134 AGQs approved for inclusion on the 2024 aged16-18 performance tables, all of which are in scope of the post-16 qualifications review.