The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee report into the work of the Office for Students, published last week, is a forensic examination of how the current regulatory approach in England is working in practice.
Over the past six months, the inquiry, and now its report have brought to the fore the topic of the English quality system’s infrastructure within that regulatory approach, shining a light on what is often a technical topic, bringing it to the attention of much wider audiences than is typical for quality assurance matters.
The committee’s report shows there is significant disquiet in the sector about the status quo, with the current quality system having “fallen out of alignment with international standards and called into question the international reputation of the sector”. The report chapter on quality and standards includes some welcome recommendations on how to rectify these issues.
QAA’s new Quality in England briefing published today shows that, if the right changes are made, not only can these issues be rectified, but a reformed external quality system could hold the key to unlocking policy progress for current and future governments.
