Grameen bank project set to help Glasgow’s poorer communities. A UK university has teamed up with Nobel prizewinner Mohammad Yunus, of microbanking fame. Gillies, a community health specialist, understood that providing economic opportunities for women – the principle behind Yunus’s renowned Grameen bank – was key to improving health and social outcomes for the most […]
Flexible VAT framework could save millions of pounds, mission group says. Simon Baker reports Tax reforms that would encourage universities to share services and potentially save millions of pounds are now crucial as the sector faces severe funding cuts, the director of a mission group has said. Libby Aston, of the University Alliance, said that […]
Comment for the Times Higher Education on VAT incentives for shared services. A forthcoming report by University Alliance into efficient and effective use of public funds by universities will recommend that the government reviews its position on VAT for shared services. Libby Aston, Director of University Alliance, said: “By implementing a more flexible framework to […]
Speaking to the Times Higher Education following Vince Cable’s comments on development in education, Libby Aston, Director of University Alliance, said: “Recent growth in student numbers has not been the result of a target, it’s been about aspirations. In the UK’s global, knowledge-based economy, where 80% of new jobs are in high-skill areas, it is […]
Every university will be asked to state how they prepare students for the world of work by David Willetts’ opening salvo to improve transparency in the sector. The Higher Education Funding Council for England is to write to institutions asking them to produce Graduate Employability Statements explaining how they support students in areas such as […]
Consultation question 1: Do you broadly agree with our statement of the purpose of HEFCE’s funding for teaching? Consultation question 2: Do you broadly agree that our funding method should give institutions the freedom to manage provision in a way that best responds to the needs of students, employers and society? Consultation question 3: Do […]
In the UK’s global, knowledge-based economy, where 80% of new jobs are in high-skill areas and new and growth industries take a high-tech, high-skill and innovative approach, universities are playing a critical role in driving the UK’s economic future. As well as being generators of economic growth and wealth creation, universities are helping to shape the new economy through […]
There is a question that is currently being asked across the UK as we face the biggest deficit since the end of World War II. The question was recently summed up by Vince Cable in his Denning Lecture; “can we reduce the deficit while still investing in helping the economy?” While government has recognised the […]
As part of our work for Lord Browne’s independent review of student fees, University Alliance found that misunderstanding and myths about university fees are causing more of a barrier to entry than the system itself. UCAS application data shows that the introduction of £3,000 fees along with fee-loans and grants did not have a negative […]
Responding to the announcement on public spending cuts this morning, Professor Andrew Wathey, Deputy-Chair of University Alliance, said: “Additional cuts are of course unwelcome at this time of uncertainty for higher education, especially before the outcome of Lord Browne’s review is known. However, we recognise efforts to retain some of the badly needed additional student […]