Last week, an article appeared in the Times which highlighted the dangers faced by Scottish Universities following Lord Mandelson's proposed shake-up of the higher education sector in England.The warning came from Lord Sutherland, former principal of Edinburgh University, who believes that there are significant funding implications for Scottish Universities if universities in England are able to charge higher fees whilst improving the experience offered to students and making a more explicit contribution to Britain’s economy.
Of course, higher education is devolved in both Scotland and Wales and what applies to the Scottish Higher Education system probably applies even more so the sector in Wales.
Therefore, rather than rewriting the whole piece to reflect the Welsh viewpoint, I have merely substituted "Wales" for "Scotland" in the Times article. It does not make easy reading for politicians and policymakers in Wales.
"Welsh universities could fall behind their English counterparts as a result of a new Westminster blueprint for improving higher education in England.
The warning came yesterday as Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary, announced a 10-year strategy which suggested that universities in England may be able to charge higher fees — but only if they improve the experience offered to students and make a more explicit contribution to Britain’s economy.
Lord Mandelson said that students should be entitled to full details on the quality of teaching and academic support. At the same time, vice chancellors should be given a new responsibility for filling skills gaps in the economy, particularly in science and technology. The twin emphasis on student entitlement and business needs, will define the role of universities for the next decade, he added.
The plan had the potential to boost the funding of English universities, particularly the most prestigious, thus enabling them to attract a higher calibre of academics. But it could adversely affect Welsh universities by drawing more funds towards their English counterparts, and making access to them more attractive to students. There were three proposals which could affect Wales— a potential rise in the cap in tuition fees, a concentration of funding in top-flight universities, and a drive to improve access to universities.
Lord Mandelson has made plain that public spending on higher education faces “constraints” in the coming years, leaving business and students to make a higher contribution, supplemented by universities seeking philanthropic support and more earnings from overseas students.
Later this month he will launch a review that is expected to lead to the lifting of the cap on variable tuition fees, which have risen in line with inflation since they were capped at £3,000 in 2004. Many English vice chancellors want the upper limit to rise to between £5,000 and £7,000 a year. According to one former Vice Chancellor, “This will significantly affect Wales as it will raise the level of funding available in the south. It means their institutions will be able to headhunt quality staff, offering very well-resourced laboratories compared to here.”
The blueprint also states that taxpayer funding of higher education research will be concentrated on fewer universities which can demonstrate world class capability. It means that institutions less associated with research but which excel in a handful of disciplines will lose out unless they collaborate with established research centres. It could also leave Welsh universities behind. “The implication is that the best universities in England, which are the top of the class in the world, will have more concentrated resources available to them – and that will put extra pressure on other universities”.
The blueprint also states that taxpayer funding of higher education research will be concentrated on fewer universities which can demonstrate world class capability. It means that institutions less associated with research but which excel in a handful of disciplines will lose out unless they collaborate with established research centres. It could also leave Welsh universities behind. “The implication is that the best universities in England, which are the top of the class in the world, will have more concentrated resources available to them – and that will put extra pressure on other universities”.
The third proposal which could improve the higher education sector in England beyond that in Wales was the move to increase participation among those from disadvantaged backgrounds who would not normally attend university. This would serve to attract the most capable students, regardless of their background as “talent is not postcoded ”.
A worrying time for universities across Wales unless a radical approach is taken soon.
Indeed, it would suggest that regardless of the high quality of research in Welsh institutions, the majority of UK research funding (which is not devolved) would be focused in a few English institutions.
Given that Wales only attracts around 3 per cent of the £2.8 billion made available by UK research councils every year, it means that around £50 million is 'unBarnetised' and goes to other universities within the UK system. This is mainly because there are too many high quality UK proposals and simply not enough funding to go around.
As a result, the funding gravitates to established research groups within the more prestigious Russell Group universities, thus widening the gap between them and the rest of the university sector.
Given this, I would suggest that Welsh policymakers need to seriously consider whether Wales' share of the funding should be ringfenced under Barnett to ensure that we do not become third class citizens in the battle to secure more funding for higher education.
If we do not, then the gap between Welsh universities and the rest of the UK will continue to grow.
Comments
Indeed, under the dual research funding system, Cardiff currently gets the majority of research funding in Wales HE and, given its current research strengths, the same would probably be true of any new devolved research fund.
If there was to be a development fund for the new universities to exploit areas such as Advanced Broadcasting, who could object as we are losing out to the tune of tens of millions already.
The evidence from the universities themselves shows that there are plenty of excellent applications from world class research groups, especially in STEM subjects, which are simply not being funded because of the bias towards the so-called golden triangle in the South East of England.
As long as quality is maintained - and there are plenty of eminent academics who could ensure this - there is no reason why Wales could not have the devolved research funds that could close the gap with England and, more importantly, help develop a knowledge-based economy.