In March 2023, the Industry and Regulators Committee in the House of Lords launched an inquiry into the work of the Office for Students (OfS). This has been an opportunity to consider how well the OfS’s regulation has been working, where things could be improved, what those improvements would look like, and how they could be achieved.
Our evidence explained that we felt the duties of the OfS are clear and appropriate, and that we agree with the OfS on what its priorities should be: quality and standards, equality of opportunity, and enabling regulation. We also discussed our shared interest in ensuring higher education in England is subject to robust and effective regulation and that we are committed to working with the regulator to understand and address any outstanding challenges. We have highlighted the areas where this has happened already and where progress has been made, but also those areas where there is still more to be done.
The OfS has already demonstrated a willingness to respond to sector feedback in areas such as provider engagement. In the next phase of its operation, our evidence sets out how we would like to see the OfS and government prioritise the following challenges.
