First Advisory Forum meeting

On Tuesday we had our first meeting of the Review’s Advisory Forum, giving the members of the Review an opportunity to hear a wide range of views on higher education funding and student finance.

The discussions were focussed around the issues in our first call for evidence, which asks the questions “What has worked since 2006? Which parts of the system should be kept, based on the available evidence?” and “What has not worked? Which parts of the system should be changed, based on the available evidence?”.

We heard many different opinions, but there was a general consensus that it was important for the Review to make recommendations which would ensure that our HE system remains world-class, while ensuring that talent, rather than ability-to-pay, is the driver of university admissions, and that the system is one which is sustainable.

A fuller note of the meeting will be available on this website shortly, and I am very much looking forward to our next Forum meeting in the Spring, where we will have an opportunity to discuss what we have learnt in the first call for evidence.