Some English universities need to do more to ensure franchised provision is the same quality as that delivered directly, senior figures in the Department for Education (DfE) have said, as they hinted that institutions will soon be expected to comply with further regulation in this area.
Guidance on what student attendance and engagement with a franchised course should look like will be published “before the summer” with transparency over the proportion of fees taken by a lead provider another issue that could be subject to further measures, Julia Kinniburgh, the director general for skills at the DfE, told a Public Accounts Committee hearing on 26 February.
MPs are investigating after a National Audit Office report highlighted concerns connected to student loan fraud detected in franchised courses.
In an often-chaotic hearing – in which MPs frequently appeared confused about how franchising and student finance works – sector leaders said they had ramped up scrutiny and regulation in light of recent concerns.
