There is no single body of legislation dealing with higher education.
The
definition of higher education in England and Wales is provided by
Section 120 of the Education Reform Act 1988: ‘education provided by
means of a course of any description mentioned in Schedule 6 of the
Act’, that is, ‘a course of a standard higher than the standard of
courses leading to General Certificate of Education Advanced-level (
GCE A-level) or Business and Technology Education Council National Diploma or Certificate’. A list of such courses is provided.
An
identical list is given for Northern Ireland in Schedule 7 of the
Education Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1989, as applied by Article
30 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1993.
The
legal basis for individual higher education institutions varies. Older
(pre-1992) universities were created under a Royal Charter. A
university’s Charter sets out its overall constitution, and its
statutes give more detail as to how it operates. The Privy Council is
responsible for advising the Queen on universities' proposals to amend
their Charter, and itself approving amendments to the statutes.
Newer
(post-1992) universities and certain other higher education
institutions are based on and operate under Parliamentary Statute. They
operate under an Instrument of Government and
Articles of Government.
Any amendments to these documents need the approval of the Privy
Council. Most Instruments and Articles of Government follow a model
Instrument, contained in the Education Reform Act 1988, and a model
version of the Articles of Government.
Whatever their legal basis, all higher education
institutions are now legally independent self-governing institutions,
accountable through a governing body which carries ultimate
responsibility for all aspects of the institution. All higher education
institutions have charitable status.
Under the Further and
Higher Education Act 1992, the Privy Council is responsible for
approving an institution as competent to grant degrees. The criteria
against which applications are considered are maintained by ministers.
For England and Wales, applications are considered under criteria
approved by ministers on 1 September 2004. For Northern Ireland (and
also Scotland), applications are considered under criteria approved by
ministers in October 1999.
Institutions which have been granted
degree awarding powers, whether by a Royal Charter, Act of Parliament
or by the Privy Council, are known as recognised bodies. All UK
universities and some other higher education institutions are
recognised bodies.
The Privy Council is also responsible, under
the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, for approving the use of the
word ‘university’ (including 'university college'). Until recently,
only institutions with the power to award research degrees were
permitted to use the title 'university'. Since 2005, institutions in
England and Wales that award only taught degrees (‘first’ and ‘second
cycle’) and which meet certain numerical criteria, have also been
permitted to use the title ‘university’. Institutions that award only
taught degrees but which do not meet the numerical criteria may apply
to use the title ‘university college’, although not all choose to do so.
Institutions
which do not have the power to award their own degrees may provide full
courses which lead to a degree of a recognised body. They are known as
listed bodies.
The
higher education sector is funded under the framework established by
the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, which created the Higher
Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Higher Education
Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW).
The Teaching and Higher
Education Act 1998 provided the legal basis for the introduction of
tuition fees for full-time undergraduate students in England and Wales.
The Act also provided the basis for changes to the system for student
support. Maintenance grants (grants for living costs) were abolished.
The Education (Student Support) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 made
similar provision for grants and loans to students in Northern Ireland.
Under
the Higher Education Act 2004, higher education institutions in England
are permitted to charge variable tuition fees of up to £3,000 per year,
to rise only with inflation until 2009 when an independent review will
take place. The Act also provides the legal basis for new arrangements
for student support, and introduced provisions giving the National
Assembly for Wales (NAfW) new powers over student support and full
responsibility for the tuition fee regime.
In Northern Ireland,
the Higher Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 introduced similar
changes to the student finance system in Northern Ireland.
Under
the Higher Education Act 2004, all higher education institutions in
England and Wales are required to comply with the rules of an
independent student complaints scheme. The scheme is operated by the
Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). The
OIA is not a regulator. It handles individual complaints against higher
education institutions and publishes recommendations about how they
deal with complaints and what constitutes good practice.
Institutions:
Higher Education Funding Council for Wales
(HEFCW) Linden Court Ilex Close Llanishen Cardiff
CF14 5DZ Wales Tel.:+44 (0)29 2076 1861 Fax:+44 (0)29 2076 3163 E-mail:info@hefcw.ac.uk Website:http://www.hefcw.ac.uk
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