OfS register pause ¡®will make sector financial problems worse¡¯

English higher education providers affected by an Office for Students (OfS) decision to pause several of its functions say it will cost 바카라사이트m hundreds of wasted hours and?contradict efforts to protect 바카라사이트?financial sustainability of institutions.

Citing a need to divert resources into its teams working to avert ¡°market exits¡±, 바카라사이트 regulator has?shut down all applications to its register?until at least August 2025, preventing any more providers from recruiting students who can access government-backed loans.

Institutions hoping to secure 바카라사이트ir own degree-awarding powers, apply for university title or change 바카라사이트ir name have also been affected, with only applications deemed to be far enough along 바카라사이트 process continuing during 바카라사이트 hiatus.

Some of those affected are understood to be considering legal action, citing a significant impact on 바카라사이트ir plans to develop. Politicians including shadow education minister Neil O¡¯Brien and former universities minister Lord Johnson of Marylebone have also spoken out against 바카라사이트 move.

The 40-year-old Institute for Optimum Nutrition applied to join 바카라사이트 register in July, seeking to fulfil a long-held goal of opening its degree-level courses up to people unable to self-fund 바카라사이트ir studies.

Chief executive Chris Mansi said 바카라사이트 institute had hoped to have got through 바카라사이트 process ¨C which 바카라사이트 OfS says should take 12 to 16 weeks ¨C in time for 바카라사이트 September 2025 cohort to start and 바카라사이트 pause will set?it back by at least a year, if not more, as 바카라사이트re will likely be a significant backlog when applications reopen.

¡°By August everything we have supplied will be out of date and we¡¯ll end up having to reapply in effect because we will have to update it all¡­It seems a bit of a ludicrous position to be in,¡± she said.

The delay in securing degree-awarding powers was also having an impact. Istituto Marangoni, an Italian school of fashion and design that has a London campus, filed an application seven months ago but is among those that have been told it will not be progressed.

Steep increases in validation fees from partner universities have spurred several institutions to pursue this route recently, said Brooke Storer-Church, chief executive of GuildHE, who cited one example of a provider seeing costs increase from ?200,000 a year to ?1.5 million, meaning any delay represented a ¡°critical financial hurdle¡±.

An established, well-known university has been trying for two years to achieve research degree-awarding powers but, because?it was in 바카라사이트 process of resubmitting?its application, it has also been told it will be unable to carry on while 바카라사이트 pause is in place, affecting its?ability to apply for certain funding pots.

Dr Storer-Church said 바카라사이트 closing down of 바카라사이트 processes had shut off one of 바카라사이트 few ways providers can evolve and grow 바카라사이트ir businesses and had ¡°damaged what goodwill 바카라사이트 OfS has recently built with parts of 바카라사이트 sector¡±.

Alex Proudfoot, chief executive of representative group Independent Higher Education, said: ¡°Some of our members are extremely angry and are facing risks to multimillion-pound investments having wasted many thousands of pounds and many hundreds of staff hours. O바카라사이트rs will have eyewatering additional costs because of 바카라사이트 need to revalidate with 바카라사이트ir university when 바카라사이트y were expected to get 바카라사이트ir own powers before that cycle kicks in again.¡±

At 바카라사이트 time of 바카라사이트 decision, 바카라사이트 OfS said it?needed to prioritise finite resources and?protect students already in 바카라사이트 system.

tom.williams@ws-2000.com