On the website of nearly every university, you will find an explanation that the institution is a charity. But what does this mean, apart from generous tax advantages? And why are universities not generally talked about as charities, in the same way as, say, Oxfam or Macmillan Cancer Support?
One reason might be that, historically, universities have been exempt from both registration and regulation as charities, though neither exemption made them any less ‘charitable’ and recent statutory reform has supposedly placed them on ‘a level playing field’ with other charities. Yet universities are still more likely to be seen as public sector organisations or large businesses, in competition with all ‘higher education providers’ and key to delivering economic growth.
In The University-Charity: Challenging Perceptions in Higher Education, I examine just how and why charitable status is significant, and how charity law – to which all charities (including universities) are subject – has a great deal to contribute to current controversies and challenges facing the university sector. From criticism of the way universities are run, and academics ‘managed’, to criticism of how our world-leading universities have ‘lost their way’ in the face of increasing government intervention, charity law offers both a fresh perspective and a robust legal framework.
