Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support higher education providers to (a) diversify their income sources and (b) reduce financial vulnerability arising from international recruitment.

Higher education (HE) providers are responsible for managing their finances. As such, they must continue to adapt to uncertainties and financial risks. However, this government is committed to putting the HE sector on a secure financial footing so that it can face the challenges of the next decade.

Our decision to raise tuition fees annually in line with inflation, alongside refocusing the Office for Students (OfS) on monitoring the sector’s financial health, demonstrates this commitment.

The government does not currently have any plans to issue guidance to higher education providers in light of the Office for Student’s (OfS) assessment of the HE sector’s reliance on international student fee income. The OfS is responsible for monitoring and reporting on the financial sustainability of the sector, including risks relating to international student recruitment.