23 September 2026 
Amanda Darley, Head of Operations and Engagement
Our annual online Finance Festival taking place on 16-18 November is open for bookings! Covering a wide range of sessions which we hope provides something for everyone, it is free to attend for any BUFDG member, and all sessions will be recorded.
Our final shared services focus is on the sessions from internal audit providers KCG internal audit - using real-world case studies to demonstrate examples of what “good” looks like in practice, and Uniac - demonstrating how a shared service internal audit model delivers far more than traditional assurance. As well as the recordings from these sessions, you can find the recordings from all sessions of our Shared Services Showcase here. We hope these can help institutions learn more about which services might be useful in their search for efficiencies, and potentially grow the use of sector-owned and shared services within the sector.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the outcome of its review and classification of the main sources of income received by UK universities/HEIs yesterday. The review covered nine different sources of income – the updated public sector classification guide can be found here and the details of the new classifications are set out here. The accompanying update confirms that the “ONS is not planning to undertake a sector classification assessment of universities …, including determining whether they are individually market or non-market bodies. However, if significant changes are made to the governance of universities, they will be reviewed against other classification priorities in the future.” This leaves most classified as “non-profit institutions serving households”.
Universities UK has issued a Future Jobs Roadmap, calling for work experience for all students, improving access to AI, universal career support and extending the employers’ NI relief for under 21s to those under 25. The roadmap has been published in different versions for England, Scotland, and Wales. The proposals took a bit of a bashing from Tax Policy Associates who called it “a £6bn lesson in bad tax policy” given the proposals hadn’t been costed, THE reports concerns that “students cannot be expected to undertake unpaid placements amid a cost-of-living crisis” as well as “doubts about the logistics of establishing work experience opportunities for thousands of students”, and Wonkhe also thinks that the roadmap should have provided “recognition that the majority of graduates will have worked to support themselves during their studies”.
And the Graduate Futures Partnership, in conjunction with the University of Leicester, has just published the report ‘From Access to Graduate Success: the next phase of social mobility’, which looks at how “all students, regardless of background, have an equal opportunity not only to access higher education, but to succeed after it”. In a similar vein to the UUK report it also calls for “meaningful workplace experience, employer engagement and practical application of learning” as well as access to AI “skills, tools and networks”. HEPI has a blog from the report authors.
UUK has been busy with lots of plans as it has also published its H E sector action plan in relation to international higher education. And UUK Chief Exec Vivienne Stern has an article on the Labour List website arguing that the prime minister’s recently announced “10-year plan must include exploiting the full potential of universities”. In relation to international H E, Public First discusses modelling the potential growth in international students in a Wonkhe article, and whether that growth is likely to be stable, and concludes that there is “almost no overlap between the countries where growth is possible and those stable enough to depend on for recruitment in the long term”. The modelling is also covered in The Pie.
THE is predicting an “autumn of chaos” for UK universities with a number of “unprecedentedly” long strikes planned, and this Wonkhe piece looks at whether H E staff are currently suffering from low morale and change fatigue, or something else – a crisis of belonging.
On the student side of things, Wonkhe has been analysing the UCAS clearing data.
HEPI recently published a two-part blog on ways to better measure the economic impact of universities, particularly on their own local communities rather than at a national level. Part one argues that the wrong question is usually posed – ‘“How large is the economic activity generated by this institution?” is legitimate, but it is not the same as “Does this institution make its place more prosperous, and for whom?”’; part two proposes a “better model” which would “quantify the direct economic contribution of the institution, but would also identify and measure the local distributional effects that many current assessments leave invisible”.
Save the Student surveyed just over 1,400 students for their National Student Money Survey and found that they spend an average £1,146 per month - £467 more than the maximum maintenance loan. 59% have a part-time job, 28% have more than one job, and 63% skip meals at least some of the time in order to save money.
The Russell Group wants government to consider “differential fees for the first time — by institution as well as course” in this Times(£) article, with a similar argument repeated in The Times(£) View.
The Policy Institute has published a report on ‘Trust in Scientists’, based on research showing that while trust in scientists remains generally high in the UK, “this trust isn't just about whether people think scientists know their subject – it's about whether people feel scientists are doing good for them”. It finds that while this “sense of shared identity is a powerful driver of trust” it may also “present a significant risk, if growing political polarisation influences how people see science”.
The BBC reports that the University of Brighton is considering closing one of its three campuses – the Falmer campus – by 2030, to consolidate activities on its other two campuses. The University plans to consult on the proposed changes.
The DfE report, compiled by KPMG, ‘Understanding the cost of undergraduate provision and qualifications in the higher education sector in England’ has been released – designed to provide the DfE with an updated understanding of the full economic cost of teaching undergraduate first degrees (level 6) and other H E courses in England. The headline is that the average cost of teaching a full-time first degree is £12,317, based on 2023-24 TRAC data. Unsurprisingly, medicine / dentistry / veterinary degrees are most expensive to teach at £19,986 a year, whereas law is least expensive at £9,475 (so even the ‘cheapest’ degree to provide cost more than the maximum tuition fee of £9,250 back in 2023-24). Compared to the previous report in 2019, based on 2016-17 data, this report shows that “the cost of all subject areas has increased by less than RPIX. This would suggest that since 2016-17, on average, universities have managed their cost more in line with the income available” – staff costs in particular have risen significantly below inflation. What DfE does with the information remains to be seen. We’re grateful to DfE representatives for talking to our TRAC conference delegates about the report yesterday, and DK provides a bit of analysis on Wonkhe.
With DfE undertaking a review of the sector’s finances DK reminds us in Wonkhe that whatever the DfE submits to the Treasury, any changes will be a Treasury decision, and concludes that any “solutions that do emerge will be marginal gains at best” because there are “civilisation level challenges that will be front and centre in budget preparations”.
On the Post-18 Project website, John Blake looks at whether a different future is possible for the H E sector, and asks “are you prepared to lose individually, in order to win collectively?”.
Describing the English student loans system, The Guardian asks why has university become such a scam? It recognises that current fees “often don’t even cover humanities courses”, but describes the fresh wave of students heading off to uni this term as “being absolutely had” and that this is a “straight up scam” by the government on the younger generation.
A Mills & Reeve article in Wonkhe looks at the OfS risk assessment framework published in July and asks what the new risk categories really tell us about financial viability. It points out that “there is a risk that third party stakeholders start using OfS’ framework and, more specifically, OfS’s risk categories, as trigger events for their own enforcement powers” even though the OfS “risk assessments should not be revealing anything that an engaged lender doesn’t know about already”.
The OfS has launched a new market monitoring tool, designed to identify supply and demand for higher education. While Wonkhe describes it as “one dashboard to rule them all”, it turns out that one of the major issues with it is that it is in fact several dashboards which don’t interact as each data source is kept separate. DK would really prefer it if it allowed “the reader to derive an insight that is not available directly from the raw data”, and there’s no access to the underlying data in order to do this yourself - though DK has had a go anyway of course.
Research Professional reports on a John Healey speech announcing £150 million investment for “innovative and fast-growing firms” in the north of England, which “are likely to benefit university spinouts”.
This Wonkhe article examines the English higher education market and finds it “pretty strange” as markets go.
As part of the Universities UK work, Universities Scotland released its own Future Jobs Scotland roadmap. It is “part of a wider conversation” as the work on the Future Framework continues, including the likelihood that “learners, employers and the economy will shift significantly over the next two decades, and that universities must evolve alongside them”.
See the ‘Sector’ section above for details of the outcome of the ONS review of nine types of university income transactions. For Scotland specifically, tuition fees paid by government were classified as “other miscellaneous current transfers between the central government subsector and the households sector”.
The House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee has issued a report on ‘Securing Scotland’s Future: Defence Skills and Jobs’ which warns that “training provision is not keeping pace with future workforce needs - risking Scotland's ability to deliver the UK's defence strategy and realise the full benefits of increased defence investment”.
The Welsh government announced that the independent review of higher education will be chaired by Prof Patrick Prendergast, former provost of Trinity College Dublin and current chair of Ireland’s Southeast Technological University. THE reports on the difficult balance the review must consider, with the deputy minister for skills and tertiary education noting the Welsh government is “walking a tightrope between supporting the institutions through fees and supporting the students with potential long-term debt”.
Last week the First Minister confirmed to the Senedd that no decision has yet been announced on tuition fees for 2027–28, with the government considering “how best to support students while maintaining the higher education sector in Wales”.
Universities Wales has published the WalesRoadmap as part of the UUK Future Jobs Roadmap.
Medr announced its Higher Education Research Capital funding allocations and universities in Wales will retain flexibility over how to spend the funding, rather than being limited to maintaining existing facilities only as in England. The c.£8m between six universities is lower than the c.£9m last year (a result of wider UKRI changes to research capital funding), but is also set to fall further in coming years. Wonkhe’s Research Agenda site looks at the announcement in more detail.
The Welsh government’s programme for the next four years has been released, with reform of tertiary education based on the findings of the current higher education review.
Following the introduction of Visitor Levy legislation in Scotland and Wales, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has confirmed legislation for an Overnight Visitor Levy in England will be included in the current Parliamentary session. The levy will be calculated on a percentage basis and will apply to overnight, non-residential accommodation only, so likely to apply to non-term time use of student accommodation and conference centres/hotel bookings. Mayoral and foundation strategic authorities will be able to consult on whether an OVL should be introduced in their region, and would need to provide businesses with sufficient notice of the introduction of any levy. Our tax team has prepared some analysis here, including what to think about now.
The recording and slides, plus the delegate pack, for our annual employment status training session are now all available on our website. Andrea and Julia have created a webpage setting out recommended BUFDG tax induction resources and courses for different roles (whether that be tax roles, payroll, research, or procurement) for those new to working in H E or just needing more information or a refresher.
All the latest H E tax news is available in the latest TaxHE, and there’s an update on the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on the discussion board.
A Framework Practice guide has been published by the Cabinet Office. The guide is designed to support the effective design, management and use of frameworks by promoting a more strategic, whole-lifecycle approach to procurement, as well as offering practical tips for members navigating the transition to the Procurement Act 2023.
UKUPC are hosting the next Unit 4 (Agresso) Procurement User Group on 6 October. The group brings members together to discuss Unit 4 system use, group objectives, and shared best practice. Members can register here to attend.
The Public Procurement and Oversight Progress Report for 2025/26 has been published. It highlights trends in raised referrals to Procurement Compliance and Oversight and outlines key findings and recommendations for improvement.
The Counter-Fraud Working Group meets on 25 September, where the group will be joined by Dr. Rasha Kassem of the Fraud Research Group at Aston University, and Hope Sapey & Matthew Field of the Fraud Advisory Panel. The Group is keen to hear from BUFDG members with an interest in counter-fraud who would like to join the group –get in touch with Ashley if you’d like to find out more.
Our next SORP forum will be on 24 November and is open for booking.
Research England has unveiled its Collaboration for a Sustainable Future programme, to further enable collaboration across universities for a sustainable cost-effective future. The first two funding opportunities will open on 1 October supported by £19.75 million investment, and successful projects will receive from £10,000 to £5 million.
ARMA has launched a sector-wide survey to capture information on how the research management and administration community is using, not using, or considering using artificial intelligence in their work and how ARMA can support the profession to use AI responsibly, confidently and effectively. The survey is open to both ARMA members and non-members, takes around 20 minutes to complete, and closes on 30 September.
Innovate UK has released an updated Project Impact Questionnaire template for universities in response to feedback at the recent drop-in surgeries, alongside an update providing clarity on questions only relevant to businesses, character limits, visibility within IFS, and contact details for future queries.
The Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE) has spent a year looking at how to reimagine UK R&D, and has published its findings.
Wonkhe’s Research agenda (currently free to access) has a piece on science minister Chris McDonald’s speech at the UUK conference “that showed which areas the newly formed Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) will prioritise in research and innovation – and why the department has been set up in the way it has”. It also covers the Research England Executive Chair’s speech on research commercialisation.
There’s also a piece discussing the draft European Innovation Act, and summarises the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee’s hearing on the implications of the abolition of DSIT. It also looks at the joint statement from European research groups on the EU’s budget choices around research.
The UK Space Strategy has been published, setting out how the UK will look to use space (the stars and satellite type) for economic growth and defence. Wonkhe’s Research Agenda has had a look, and tells us that, disturbingly, the government’s satellite communication capability is actually called Skynet. It talks in particular about new approaches to procurement and concludes that “[t]he space strategy is only part of the innovation puzzle, but it gives us a clue to the future. At its heart, its reliance on better procurement, on a grander scale, could be indicative of a new approach”.
This FT(£) article examines USS investments, describing the scheme as “a Marmite thing” and wondering whether “USS members could have their Marmite and eat it too”.
Our job of the fortnight is Director of Finance at Leeds Beckett University. The University is looking for an outstanding financial leader to join the University Executive Team to provide strategic financial leadership across the institution, ensuring the University remains financially resilient, sustainable and well-positioned to deliver its long-term ambitions. The Director of Finance will lead the Financial Services function, with responsibility for financial strategy, planning, reporting, treasury, procurement, taxation, insurance, regulatory compliance and financial control, as well as advising senior colleagues and governors on opportunities, risks and investment decisions.
