Newsletter Issue October number 3 2007

This is the third edition of the new HEFCW newsletter. In it you will find information on new and recent developments in funding higher education in , including links to news items and circulars. It also summarises of some of the key decisions taken at meetings of our Council.

• Clicking on an item in the index below will take you to a newsletter story. • Clicking on the newsletter story will take you to our website for more information.

Please contact Emma Raczka on 029 2068 2225 or at [email protected] if you would like this newsletter in an alternative format, such as large text or Braille.

In this edition Î Students in Î HEFCW Council Î Consultation on Î Welsh medium Î Sustainable Wales show meetings HEFCW’s Welsh premium payments building standards satisfaction with Medium Provision courses Development Fund Î Widening Î Review of Î Analysis of the ÎWorking with Î Consultation access to higher research policy financial position of partners: events conference on an e- education the HE sector learning strategy for 2005/06 higher education in Wales Î Supporting Î Welsh Public Î Funding Î Additional ÎInformation about Professionalism in Sector Broadband allocations in support for part- HEFCW Admissions Aggregation project academic year time students Programme (SPA) 2006/07 2007/08

Students in Wales show satisfaction with courses

The results of the third annual UK-wide National Student Survey (NSS) were published on 12 September 2007. They showed that those in higher education in Wales continued to have a high level of satisfaction with their student experience.

The 2007 NSS showed that 83 per cent of students in Wales were satisfied with their experience, which remained above the figure for the UK as a whole.

This year’s consistently high results also saw improved outcomes for academic support and learning resources.

The results for Wales have shown stability over the three years in which the survey has been carried out.

Professor Philip Gummett, Chief Executive of HEFCW, said: “Once again, the National Student Survey has confirmed, independently, the high level of satisfaction with higher education in Wales. This shows that universities and colleges in Wales take seriously their role in providing a rewarding student experience.”

As in the rest of the UK, the lowest levels of satisfaction were once more reserved for assessment and feedback, with only 61% of students expressing satisfaction in this category of questions. In Wales, assessment is once again a priority enhancement area for the Higher Education Academy in 2007/08, and we are encouraging institutions to work with the Academy to boost this aspect of the student experience.

The results will be available on www.unistats.com once site preparation is complete. Íback HEFCW Council meetings

The Council met on 19 September and 18 October 2007. This newsletter includes news on some of the issues that were discussed at those meetings.

Council will next meet on 7 December 2007. Íback

Consultation on HEFCW’s Welsh Medium Provision Development Fund

Over the summer, we invited views on proposals for how to use our Welsh Medium Provision Development Fund in future years.

This was done in the context of the commitment by heads of HEIs, through HEW (Higher Education Wales), to set up a new sector-wide strategic framework for Welsh medium higher education, including a national development plan. This work is being led by the Welsh Medium Higher Education Sector Group (WM HESG), which has senior representation from all HEIs.

We want to ensure that the Fund is used strategically to support the development and expansion of Welsh medium provision in line with the national development plan. We will let the sector know the outcomes of the consultation shortly and will discuss future action in the next meeting of the WM HESG Íback

Welsh medium premium payments Sustainable building standards We have provided revised guidance on: The Welsh Assembly Government has set a target of ensuring • returning statistical data that all new buildings constructed in Wales from 2011 will be ‘zero on Welsh medium carbon’. provision to the Higher Education Statistics As a first step towards achieving this ambition, it has issued Agency (HESA), which advice about new building projects funded or supported by capital collects, analyses and funding released directly or indirectly by the Assembly. This will disseminates include funding released by HEFCW or other Assembly quantitative information Government Sponsored Bodies to HEIs. The new procedures about higher education require: in the UK; and • how that data will be • All new buildings to achieve an overall Building Research used by HEFCW to Establishment Environmental Assessment Method determine Welsh (BREEAM) ‘excellent’ standard upon post-completion medium premium assessment; and allocations. • A minimum of 10% of the total value of the building materials used to be derived from recycled and reused This follows on from work content. carried out in 2006 on the costs of providing HE HEFCW will be working with the sector and the other UK HE modules through the funding bodies to support institutions in achieving the new medium of Welsh and a standards and in making further improvements to sustainability in consultation with the line with the Welsh Assembly Government’s aspirations. sector on updating the Íback earlier guidance. Íback Widening access to higher education

We recently provided feedback to institutions on a number of widening access and disability reports and confirmed institutional widening access strategy funding for the 2007/08 academic year.

This confirmed that:

• Most institutions used HESA performance indicators to benchmark widening access performance.

• Some institutions included longer-term targets to 2008/09. However, most institutions set targets for 2006/07 only.

• Most strategies provided a wide range of ‘all age’ provision. There are some good examples of progression being co-ordinated between institutional widening access activities and Reaching Wider partnership activities.

• Actions to improve retention played a significant part in all widening access strategies.

• Most institutions acknowledge that work to support care leavers is at an early stage, with plans for developing this work.

• Not all institutions are making the important link between their disability provision plans and their Disability Equality Schemes (DES). Íback

Review of research policy

HEFCW established a Research Analysis of the financial position of the HE Sounding Group to help with the sector 2005/06 review of research policy. Such was the value of the Group that the We publish information on the financial position of the Council has agreed to establish a higher education sector in Wales each year. Research Sounding Group on a permanent basis and it considered HE institutions return audited financial statements the new group’s constitution and annually to HEFCW. These statements provide us with terms of reference at its September a snapshot of institutions’ finances in any given year and meeting. let us assess and monitor their financial health to ensure that public funds and publicly funded assets are not Earlier in the summer, we reported being put at risk. on the outcomes of the review, including a revised statement of our Circular W07/33HE, published in August 2007, informed research policy objectives and the institutions of financial health performance indicators for broad supporting funding the HE sector in Wales based on the audited financial framework. Next, we need to review statements for 2005/06, the latest available. and modify the operational details Íback of our research funding method and plan to provide the sector with further information in spring 2008.

Íback Working with partners

We work with higher education institutions in Wales and a range of organisations in fulfilling our role. . Íback

From Margin to Mainstream: consultation conference on an e-learning strategy for higher education in Wales

HEFCW is funding a free major conference together with the Higher Education Academy in association with JISC RSC Wales. The conference will provide Were you aware? an opportunity for delegates to comment on an E- learning Strategy for Higher Education in Wales. It Around three-quarters of Welsh will also provide a rich programme of speakers domiciled students or students assembled from universities and e-learning from Welsh institutions, who organisations across the UK, covering the following themes: gained HE qualifications from HEIs in 2005/06, entered some • E-learning and pedagogy sort of work. 5 per cent were • E-assessment assumed to be unemployed, • Widening participation with the majority of the • Innovation in E-learning remainder entering study only. • Learning spaces – physical and virtual.

The conference will take place on Tuesday 13 November 2007, 9.30 am - 16.30 pm at The Metropole , Llandrindod Wells. Anyone interested in attending should complete the online booking form. Íback

Supporting Professionalism in Admissions Programme (SPA) December 2007

SPA provides evidence of and guidelines for good practice in fair admissions. It also helps HEIs maintain excellence and professionalism in admissions, student recruitment and widening participation. It is funded by all UK funding bodies, including HEFCW.

One of its key activities is visits to HEIs. Since its inception in June 2006, SPA has visited five HEIs in Wales, with more visits planned. The SPA Director attends the Welsh Standing Group organised by UCAS and the body is in regular contact with HEFCW, Higher Education Wales, Dysg and HEIs throughout Wales. It is also part of the HE Advisory Team for the Welsh Baccalaureate.

In December, SPA will be holding a major conference for admissions practitioners in Wales. You will find further details in due course at www.spa.ac.uk or by emailing [email protected].

Íback The Welsh Public Sector Broadband Aggregation project

HEIs will be among the first to benefit from the creation of a faster, better broadband infrastructure in Wales.

The Welsh Public Sector Broadband Aggregation (PSBA) project - the biggest of its kind in the UK – is creating a new, high speed broadband infrastructure for more than 1,000 locations across the country. It will be built and managed by Logicalis UK Ltd.

By combining and integrating the needs, speeds and feeds of HE, NHS Wales, local government and other public sector broadband users, PSBA uses the benefits of scale to create a single, unified network to support public services in Wales.

JANET, which delivers broadband capacity and services to the academic sector, is both an important partner and first ‘customer’ of PSBA. The new network will be formally launched in early December. In the meantime, contact Brian Moon at [email protected] for more information. Íback

Funding allocations in Additional support for part-time students academic year 2006/07 2007/08

Over the summer, we announced allocations for In August, we published details of additional funding to support part-time students in the teaching, research and capital 2007/08. The aim of the funding is to maintain and grants made by HEFCW to higher strengthen part-time programmes, focusing on education institutions (HEIs) and widening access to higher education and extending directly funded further education links with employers in delivering part-time courses. colleges (FECs) in Wales in the 2006/07 academic year, which runs An annual fund of £6.4 million has been set aside from 1 August to 31 July. over the next three years. £4.4 million of this will be Íback used to help widen access to HE for part-time students. The remaining £2 million will be used to strengthen HEIs’ engagement with employers in delivering part-time higher education.

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HEFCW’s organisation

As all organisations need to do from time to time, we are reviewing our own structure within HEFCW. We aim to have:

• A structure well fitted to respond to the developing higher education agenda in Wales and beyond; • A stronger capacity to address issues of institutional health and sustainability; and • More strategic engagement with HEIs, individually and collectively.

Operationally, this means rebalancing senior management support to the Chief Executive, better integrating related functions and making teams more adaptable. The new post of Director of Strategic Development was advertised in September, with interviews taking place in late October. Íback

Were you aware? Forthcoming meetings and events In the academic year 2005/06 there were 13 HEFCW’s annual public meetings – December 2007

higher education Credit and Qualifications Framework for Wales institutions in Wales with 24 January 2008, Marriott Hotel a total income of £922m Higher education in Wales – working across of which 41.6% came via boundaries HEFCW Contact [email protected] for an outline agenda and booking form. Íback

Statutory Schemes are available on our website

Go to: Welsh Language Scheme Disability Equality Scheme Race Equality Scheme Draft Gender Equality Scheme Íback

Recent and forthcoming publications

Circular W07/42HE: Enhancing Learning and Teaching through Technology: a Strategy for Higher Education in Wales Íback HEFCW’s Mission Our mission is to promote internationally excellent higher education in Wales, for the benefit of individuals, society and the economy, in Wales and more widely.

Through an open and transparent funding system, About us we focus our support for the sector on:

HEFCW is responsible for • promoting learning and teaching funding higher education in development, particularly the quality of the Wales. learning experience;

• investing in a strong research base and We distribute funds made developing research excellence; available by the Welsh Assembly • encouraging activities in higher education that Government to support support business and the community; education, research and related • widening access to higher education; activities at 11 higher education • supporting the development of Welsh language institutions. higher education;

• strengthening the sector - with an emphasis We also fund the teaching on encouraging reconfiguration and activities of the Open University collaboration, financial sustainability, effective in Wales and higher education leadership and governance, European and courses at further education international developments, and maintaining the colleges. estate; and

• accrediting and funding providers of initial We do not fund students directly. teacher training courses in Wales. Íback Íback

In addition to its funding responsibilities, HEFCW provides advice to the Welsh Assembly Government on the funding needs, aspirations and concerns of the higher education sector in Wales. Íback

www.hefcw.ac.uk

For further information about any of the issues contained within this newsletter, or any others relating to higher education in Wales, please email [email protected] or telephone 029 2076 1861.

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For advice about student funding and finance in Wales, visit Student Finance Wales. Íback