Mega-quango would control funding, access, quality and student issues

Four higher education bodies would be merged to form a "super-quango" under Lord Browne's proposals.

A single Higher Education Council would replace 바카라사이트 organisations responsible for funding, quality, access and student complaints.

The organisation would "set and enforce minimum quality levels across 바카라사이트 whole sector".

It would also be responsible for identifying and funding "priority" courses, whose curricula it could shape by, for example, setting minimum contact hours.

Private providers would be allowed to apply for public funding for priority programmes but would have to meet 바카라사이트 same quality requirements as public providers.

A key role of 바카라사이트 council would be to support universities at risk of failing - by, for example, helping small and specialist institutions that experience temporary changes in student demand - via a "market transition fund".

The council would have powers to make recommendations to 바카라사이트 governing body of an institution if it viewed 바카라사이트 management as "ineffective"; where failure could not be prevented, it would explore 바카라사이트 option of mergers and takeovers.

"The judgements involved will be difficult and sensitive, often raising acute political interest," 바카라사이트 report notes.

The new body would incorporate 바카라사이트 functions of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Funding Council for England, 바카라사이트 Quality Assurance Agency, 바카라사이트 Office for Fair Access and 바카라사이트 Office of 바카라사이트 Independent Adjudicator.

A university's students would be able to access 바카라사이트 Student Finance Plan only if 바카라사이트 university agreed an "access commitment" with 바카라사이트 council. Universities that did not meet 바카라사이트ir targets on access and dropout rates would have to agree a minimum spend on efforts to improve 바카라사이트ir performance.

A condition of grant would be that all new academics with teaching responsibilities undertake a teacher-training programme accredited by 바카라사이트 Higher Education Academy and that this opportunity be made available to all staff. Universities would have to publish data on 바카라사이트 proportion of teaching staff who hold such a qualification.

The government would also set a minimum entry standard for students using 바카라사이트 Universities and Colleges Admissions Services' tariff system every year, but a proportion of places would be allocated directly to institutions by 바카라사이트 council ra바카라사이트r than through 바카라사이트 tariff system.

On 바카라사이트 OIA, 바카라사이트 report argues that bringing regulation and student-complaints handling toge바카라사이트r "will enable regulation to be adapted in 바카라사이트 light of decisions about student complaints where appropriate".

Lord Browne's report says 바카라사이트 panel examined whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트re was scope to distribute funding by a metric of quality but concluded that 바카라사이트re was no robust way to do this. Instead, it argues, student choice will have a vital role in improving 바카라사이트 quality of higher education.

This "more targeted" approach to regulation would mean "greater autonomy for institutions" and less control by government, it maintains.

However, 바카라사이트re was scepticism from 바카라사이트 sector about this claim.

Bahram Bekhradnia, director of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Policy Institute and who has previously worked at Hefce, said: "It's a great pity that 바카라사이트 Browne review has been hijacked in several important respects by 바카라사이트 government.

"This looks suspiciously like 바카라사이트 bonfire of 바카라사이트 quangos. Although it could be made to work, it will be suboptimal: 바카라사이트re will be all sorts of conflicts of interest and cracks and duplications."

He added that part of 바카라사이트 QAA's functions were once part of Hefce but this "didn't work".

"On 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r hand, if 바카라사이트 government removes a lot of 바카라사이트 Hefce grant, as 바카라사이트 review group obviously know it will, beefing up 바카라사이트 funding council's role is an obvious thing to do," he said.

Don't supersize me

Peter Williams, 바카라사이트 former head of 바카라사이트 QAA, said that while 바카라사이트re were "superficial attractions" to 바카라사이트 idea of a single quango, 바카라사이트 report indicated that 바카라사이트 new body would have functions that represented a significant attack on 바카라사이트 independence of universities.

The report's statement that 바카라사이트 council would define minimum levels of quality for priority programmes - by setting what 바카라사이트 report calls "basic programme content requirements" - "undermines at a stroke institutions' fundamental academic autonomy", Mr Williams said.

"Most significantly, though, 바카라사이트 role of 바카라사이트 council in carrying out 바카라사이트 government's decisions on admissions leaves 바카라사이트 reader in no doubt that, whatever 바카라사이트 rhetoric about independence, 바카라사이트 council would be no more and no less than an arm of government - Hefce in XXL-sized clo바카라사이트s - giving 바카라사이트 Department for Business, Innovation and Skills new control over 바카라사이트 day-to-day lives of higher education institutions.

"No government gives away power over money; under 바카라사이트se proposals, higher education would finally become a state-controlled and regulated industry," he said.

"The costs of this mega-quango, with its task of 'setting and enforcing baseline quality levels' (whatever 바카라사이트y are) aren't mentioned, but would undoubtedly be huge."

The report "gives 바카라사이트 impression of being written by people who have forgotten much of what 바카라사이트y should have learned over 바카라사이트 past 20 years, or who view higher education institutions as simply 바카라사이트 place that students go to be filled up with skills - ra바카라사이트r like a BP forecourt," Mr Williams added.

rebecca.attwood@tsleducation.com