The government is consulting on potential changes to the fees paid by English higher education providers to the Office for Students (OfS) that could see larger institutions pay more and additional charges introduced for some of the regulator’s services.
The Department for Education is reviewing how the current fee system is designed and distributed across providers, including either reducing the cost per student for smaller providers or introducing a flat fee for all institutions with a variable component based on an institution’s student numbers.
Alongside these options, it is considering introducing an additional band for providers with 30,000 or more full-time equivalent (FTE) students.
Currently, providers are allocated to fee bands according to student numbers, with new and micro-providers eligible for fee discounts.
The highest band sees providers with more than 20,000 students charged £222,850 per year, while the smallest providers – with less than 25 students – are charged £14,775.
