Introduction
In 2017 there were 112 institutions termed ‘alternative providers’ offering higher education. These institutions do not receive government grants directly, but do access public funding through student loans which are used to pay their fees. In the 2015–16 academic year, around 34,000 students attending alternative providers received student loans, and Government paid out £417 million in tuition fee loans, maintenance loans and grants to alternative providers and their students. In 2016, the Department for Education assumed responsibility for oversight of publicly-funded higher education, taking over from the former Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS). From April 2018, a new Office for Students will be responsible for regulating all English higher education institutions, including alternative higher education providers. The previous Committee reported on weaknesses in BIS’s oversight of alternative providers in 2015. This report follows up on the progress made by the Department to address those concerns.
6 March 2018