Risk of an insolvency is rising after student numbers failed to grow as fast as expected

Those who work in and around the Higher Education, or HE sector, have been having a rough time if recent media headlines are anything to go by. Since the turn of the year, there has been what’s felt like a constant stream of stories about universities making redundancies, cutting costs and scaling back their operations in an attempt to make themselves more financially sustainable.

David warned in the Lords debate on the Renters Rights Bill that there is a risk it does real damage to the student lettings market.

David Willetts debates in the House of Lords on Strategy & Suspension of New Awards and Registrations

Many Conservatives are wary of universities. This is bad for universities and bad for any political party which aims to win the support of young people.

One of the reasons President Trump is back in office is his extraordinary appeal to a key electoral group — “I love the poorly educated”.

The returns from higher education for graduates and the economy. David Willetts' presentation on his review on the topic

Growing doubts about the financial returns from gaining a degree and concerns about too many people now going to university are challenged in a new report by former universities minister David Willetts.

David Willetts debates in the House of Lords on the Qualifications Reform Review.

David Willetts debates in the House of Lords on the question; how can we ensure that our universities are in a stronger position in 10 years than they are today?

A short history of English universities. First there was Oxford. Then Cambridge (And nothing else for 600 years)

From America’s post War GI Bill to the transformation of Korea, more people getting more education is one of the most powerful tools which a government has to transform its economy.

Frozen fee levels must rise eventually, but universities need to deliver efficiency gains through hybrid

The end of 2021 is going to be crucial for post-16 education in England. The Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) will determine its funding. The Skills and Post-16 Education Bill going through Parliament will shape its structure. The new Secretary of State has an opportunity to review and revise the Department for Education’s strategy. These big decisions are being taken against a political and media backdrop more hostile to universities than for a long time.

Graduate employment outcomes are obviously crucial. Yet we must be wary of judging courses and institutions on the basis of a few useful but misleading

Head, Hand, Heart: The Struggle for Dignity and Status in the 21st Century. David Goodhart has long been interested in a particularly acute set of modern dilemmas: commitment or exit; staying or moving; community or market. He has already added ‘somewhere or anywhere’ to that list.

Universities are fantastic institutions, delivering multiple benefits to those who pass through them. But we have a complex set of social attitudes to universities, in part because of the unique way they developed in England.

The former higher education minister on why the English sector must keep growing, the ‘barbarism’ at the heart of the schools system and how to tackle negativity about universities