Further education (FE) colleges offering higher education qualifications may no longer have to prove they are financially viable to the Office for Students (OfS), as the regulator seeks to reduce duplication. 

The English watchdog has proposed plans to streamline the regulation of the further education (FE) providers it is partially responsible for overseeing, including by dropping some of the conditions related to financial viability and governance.

Currently, FE colleges offering higher-level courses are subject to regulation by both the Department for Education (DfE) and the OfS. 

To reduce duplication, the OfS has proposed disapplying five of its initial conditions of registration and four general ongoing conditions of registration where it says the DfE already has “robust oversight” in place. 

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This includes condition A2, which requires providers charging fees up to the basic amount to publish an access and participation statement setting out how they will support students from disadvantaged and under-represented groups. The DfE also requires colleges to demonstrate this. 

However condition A1, which requires institutions that charge tuition fees up to the statutory fee limit to have a similar plan, will remain in place. 

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For FE providers that do not hold or are not seeking degree-awarding powers (DAPs), the OfS is proposing to disapply condition D, which requires providers to be financially viable and sustainable, alongside several management and governance conditions. 

“Colleges have told us that the complex regulatory landscape that they must navigate can be a barrier to offering higher education courses,” said Philippa Pickford, OfS director of regulation. 

She added that the changes were being made in anticipation of the sector expanding when the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) comes into force in 2027.

The LLE will replace the current student finance system and allow learners to access four years’ worth of student loans to use on flexible education over their lives. 

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“In disapplying requirements where DfE already has robust oversight, we hope to make the registration process as smooth as possible for these institutions and ensure our regulation remains proportionate and risk-based,” Pickford said.

“We’ve been considering how we regulate different types of institution and most of the changes we are proposing today will only apply to colleges that do not have and are not seeking degree-awarding powers. 

“That’s because institutions with DAPs are responsible for awarding qualifications that are of significant value to students, employers and the wider higher education sector, and we think it’s important to retain a fuller set of conditions of registration for these providers.”

helen.packer@timeshighereducation.com