BUFDG Digest - 23 October 2024

SECTOR / GOVERNMENT

International recruitment is in the spotlight again, with the latest Home Office figures showing a 16% reduction in visa applications made between July and September than in the same period last year. Times Higher Education (£) analysis highlights declining applications from India and Nigeria as a contributing factor to an increasingly challenging international recruitment landscape. Love them or hate them, the World University Rankings 2025 results are out and highlight a decline in research and teaching reputation for the UK. HEPI explores the relevance of international students to the UK’s weakening position in its 2024 Soft-Power Index.

Higher Education has been a hot topic in Parliament of late, with Education minister Janet Daby answering questions on possible tuition fee increases, the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, student loan interest rates, and the free speech act.

Ministers unveiled the Employment Rights Bill, aiming to help deliver economic security and growth to businesses through the protection of workers under new legislation welcomed by trade unions. The impact on universities, their staff and students could be far reaching, and the potential in rising costs for employers is clear.

The catchily titled Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill was also announced, designed to transfer the functions of the Institute to the Secretary of State ahead of its abolishment. While the legislation doesn’t mention Skills England specifically, this Department for Education (DfE) job advert for the first chief executive of Skills England and the policy summary notes substantiate the role that Skills England will play in the government’s wider skills reform agenda.

In a bills related hat trick, a call for evidence on the Renter’s Rights Bill has launched. Following its first reading in the Commons in September, the impact on students and landlords providing student accommodation has continued to attract attention, with articles from HEPI, Wonkhe, and property industry media calling for a rethink. The unique circumstances of students in relation to the Bill were widely debated at the second reading on 9 October.

Robert Jenrick delivered a speech to the Centre for Policy Studies, outlining his economic vision for the country which includes a reallocation of funds to apprenticeships and vocational education by withholding student loans for the worst-performing courses. This return to the narrative around rip-off degrees would see 130,000 fewer students going to university.

The UK’s International Investment Summit on 14 October launched Invest 2035, the government’s ‘credible, 10-year plan to deliver the certainty and stability businesses need to invest in the high growth sectors that will drive our growth mission’, promising stability and regulatory reform to potential investors. The green paper, which paves the way for a modern industrial strategy, referenced our world-class universities as one of the UK’s key strengths and at the heart of research and innovation, a case the Russell Group made strongly in the recent ‘Future Ready’ publication. Wonkhe’s Jame Coe considers what this might mean for Higher Education. Although the endorsement from the Chancellor provides some hope for long-term strategic investment, the message regarding pressure on departmental budgets is clear and will inevitably impact decisions made in the forthcoming Autumn Budget and Comprehensive Spending Review. This Wonkhe thought piece highlights the need for the sector to make its case for a seat at the table.

BUDGET

This is the final Digest before the Autumn Budget, which readers will almost certainly be aware takes place on Wednesday, 30 October. The Institute for Fiscal Studies are hosting a free analysis webinar on Thursday 31 October, and BUFDG members can find a list of reaction webinars scheduled by key advisors on the Discussion Board.

Sector leaders have been putting their best foot forward, with the Russell Group, University of Cambridge, the National Centre for Universities and Business, and Universities UK all highlighting the benefits of investing in university led R&D, and the need to safeguard the financial health of the sector, in the hope the Chancellor takes note in these final days of decision making.  

While the press continues to speculate on what might be announced, there is growing concern across the sector that rumoured changes to national insurance, pensions and research funding could put more pressure on university finances (£).

Following the release of the Universities UK Blueprint earlier this month, The Conversation reflects that the sector is seeking want higher fees and funding, but the government will be weighing up the financial and political costs and may prefer a more targeted approach.  

If the thought of a ‘bloody budget’ is getting you down, you may find some lighthearted relief in this free to play budget game from the Financial Times where you are challenged to ‘step into the chancellor’s shoes and devise your fiscal plan’.

SCOTLAND

The Scottish Funding Council has released its 2022-23 Report on Widening Access, providing updated statistics relating to equality and diversity of the student population across Scotland’s Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and colleges for 2022-23. Wonkhe’s David Kernohan unpicks the numbers here. The SFC reports that three Scottish universities have ranked in the top 25 of UK institutions in the Times Higher Education (THE) World Rankings, and the Herald reflects on the importance of Glasgow’s universities.

WALES

Universities Wales has published data revealing the full scope of the economic impact of Wales’ higher education sector on UK growth and productivity, finding that every £1 of public money put into universities across Wales generates over £13 of economic impact.

PENSIONS

We have received a copy of the new Teachers' Pension Scheme disclosure note financial note from UCEA today. You can find the new note here.

UCEA and UCU have written a joint letter to HM Treasury highlighting the severe impact of the increase in TPS employer contribution rates, the lack of additional funding to meet these costs in Higher Education, and concerns relating to the reduction in the SCAPE (Superannuation Contributions Adjusted for Past Experience) discount rate set by HMT.

Meanwhile, USS has warned the Treasury against requiring more investment in UK assets, echoing claims by other pension funds and influential groups that this would not be in the best of interest of pension savers (£).

FINANCIAL REPORTING

The development of the 2026 FEHE SORP continues at pace, with technical discussions and widespread sector engagement ongoing. Interesting examples of how the FRS 102 changes impact both Higher and Further Education continue to arise, and inform both the accompanying guidance notes, and forthcoming training materials and awareness raising activities planned for 2025 and beyond.

An exposure draft is now complete and working its way through the Financial Reporting Group and FEHE SORP Board for initial comments ahead of submission to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) in late November.

The FRC has requested a slight change to the public consultation period to align with the Charities SORP consultation, with the 12-week period now expected to commence on Wednesday 22 January 2025, closing Wednesday 16 April.

Following the completion of the consultation exercise, and subject to approval of the Financial Reporting Council, the Board anticipates that a final version of the SORP will be published in August 2025. The new SORP will be effective from accounting periods starting on or after 1 January 2026.

For more information or to find out how to contact the team undertaking this work visit the SORP Knowledge Hub.

In other news, the FRC has announced the four largest audit firms (Deloitte, EY, KPMG, PwC) have met the 2024 deadline set by the FRC to implement the principles of operational separation.

TAX

The Payroll & Employment tax Group are still seeking co-chairs for the Northern, Midlands and Welsh regional groups. You don’t need to be an expert, a keen interest and some practical knowledge coupled with a desire to create a welcoming network in your region is all that’s required. The time commitment is approximately 12 hours per year (apportioned between co-chairs). To find out more, email Julia.

For a comprehensive update on all things tax related, you can read the latest TaxHE newsletter, or the streamlined Tax Brief.  

BUFDG ACTIVITES AND EVENTS

BUFDG joined representatives of UCISA, the Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium (SUPC), Research Libraries UK (RLUK), the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL), the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), the Scottish Higher Education Digital Library (SHEDL), and the UUK/Jisc software negotiation strategy group in calling on suppliers to support the sustainability of further and higher education by providing cost-effective solutions to the sector. The open statement highlights the financial challenges in H E and the opportunity for suppliers to demonstrate value as sector partners and build on the vital work that colleges and universities do for the economy, culture, society, and public services.

Senior or aspiring leaders can join others across the sector for Understanding the financial challenges in Higher Education: Navigating pressures through strategic collaboration on Thursday 7 November, 11am-1.30pm. PwC will lead an update on the current HE financial landscape, followed by a panel discussion with AUDE, BUFDG, CUBO, HESPA, UHR and UCISA.

The next Introduction to TRAC facilitated training starts on 4 November 2024. This virtual course introduces the Transparent Approach to Costing. It looks at the TRAC requirements, what universities need to do to comply with them and how they can go about doing it.

Management Accountants' Week 2024 takes place between Tuesday 19 and Friday 22 November. This year’s schedule is already packed with some excellent sessions, and more still to come. Your ticket will allow access to all sessions throughout the week, as well as all the recorded sessions and resources post-event.

INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT

The Investment Management and Practice working group was established to enhance BUFDG support and resources in this area, address universities’ obligations as charitable organisations, understand the interaction between internal expenditure decisions on university resources and external investment, and explore the relationship between ESG issues and investment policy.

Since July 2023 the group has been working on a task and finish basis to identify and address priorities, and one of the outputs is the new Treasury and Investment Knowledge Hub, where those working in this area or keen to learn more can find practical guides, recommended reading and best practice examples including a recent case study on the environmental and social impact of the University of Edinburgh’s Social Investment Fund.

If you would like to learn more about impact investing in Higher Education, BUFDG and RINU are co-hosting a Time to Talk with Snowball on the topic of Impact Education: Navigating the Landscape of Impact Investing for Universities on Tuesday 26 November 2024, 10am-12pm.

The IMP working group will now meet annually to continue this work. Contact Joni for more information.

PROCUREMENT

HEPA is delighted to be working with the Cabinet Office to provide members with a series of H E specific communities of practice sessions, designed exclusively for members with the content tailored to your needs. Please do let Ashley know what topics you would like these sessions to focus on – no subject is too big or too small. This is a brilliant chance to hear direct from the Cabinet Office teams on any topics of your choosing in advance of the Procurement Act going live, so please do take the opportunity to feed in to make these sessions as valuable as possible for our HE procurement community!

As part of their aim to reach net zero for their estates by 2040, Imperial are exploring ways to improve sustainability in research labs through a Sustainability Symposium. A recent workshop with members of Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) and HEPA’s Responsible Procurement group highlighted ways to improve lab sustainability and gathered useful insights that will be taken forward by a lab supply chain working group under the responsible procurement initiative, chaired by Harriet Wallace, Imperial’s Sustainability Director.

We are pleased to be hosting another Time to Talk with The Energy Consortium (TEC) on energy markets online on Tuesday 12 November 2024 at 10am. This webinar is open to all BUFDG, HEPA and AUDE members, TEC membership is not required.

A big thank you to everyone who joined us for the superb time to talk on Navigating the Future: Higher Education Procurement Recruitment Trends and Strategies, with Hannah Quinn Hill, Business Director at Michael Page Procurement & Supply Chain. If you missed the session you can watch the recording here.

SUSTAINABILITY

At BUFDG we understand the urgency of the climate crisis and, like the universities we support, we want to play our part in helping to live and work more sustainably, and prevent environmental breakdown. We have summarised some of our recent sustainability-related resources and activities. If there is anything else that you think we should, or could be doing, to make your sustainability journeys easier please drop Matt an email. 

The application portal for Phase 4 Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is open until Monday 25 November at 2pm. Salix advised applicants to ensure you have registered an account beforehand, and have recently uploaded a new version of the Phase 4 project programme template due to reports of technical difficulties with this download. A reminder that changes to eligibility criteria were announced earlier this year in relation to the Procurement Act, which may impact some in the sector. Limited spaces are still available for the remaining Phase 4 Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme webinars, where you can meet the team alongside representatives from the Department, and ask questions about how the latest phase will be delivered.

The Financial Reporting Council has published initial feedback on its market study into assurance of sustainability reporting, highlighting that although the UK’s approach to sustainability assurance is yet to be defined, there is a strong desire for the UK to establish a clear regulatory framework that promotes trust and transparency in assurance of sustainability related reporting. Further responses to these emerging findings have been invited by 20 November 2024.

RESEARCH

Research Professional (£) reported on speculation that the Treasury is planning to include costs linked to UK membership of the EU’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme into the domestic research budget, potentially reducing the overall budget for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and impacting.

A reminder that new research finance co-chairs Helen Hammond (Head of Research Finance at Nottingham) and James Allman (Head of Research Accounting, Monitoring and Claims at Cranfield University) will host BUFDG’s inaugural Research Finance Forum on Monday 18 November 2024, 2-4pm. This session will be an opportunity to meet the new co-chairs, agree priorities for this newly formed group, discuss key issues, and connect with other BUFDG members working in similar roles. Please do share this with colleagues.

MISCELLANEOUS

The OfS has approved new names for both Solent University, which is changing its name to ‘Southampton Solent University’, and City, University of London which has become 'City St George's, University of London' following the merger that took place on 1 August 2024.

If you missed the King’s College London webinar on what could happen if a university became insolvent you can watch the recording online.

JOB(S) OF THE FORTNIGHT

We’re spotlighting two jobs this time. There’s still time to apply for the position of Finance and HR Systems Manager at Goldsmiths. The post will oversee and lead the management of both the Unit 4 Business World and Hireserve systems, including preparing for the transition of the current on-premises systems into a cloud-based ERP while continuing to support and resolve any issues. The closing date for this full-time permanent position is 28 October 2024.

The University of Edinburgh is seeking a Contract & Supplier Management Specialist to join its procurement team on a full time, permanent basis. The successful candidate will be responsible for supporting the delivery and development of the contract and supplier management activities within the department, ensuring the right outcomes are delivered and the performance of contracts is maximised, as well as adding value through enhancement of supplier relationship management. The closing date for applications is 18 November 2024.

For more finance jobs in H E, visit our jobs page.