To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what methodology his Department used to determine the values of a continuation rate of =90% and a skilled employment/further study rate of =75% as minimum qualifying thresholds for higher education establishments to bid for funding for 5,000 non-health care places.
Answered on
24 June 2020
The process for bidding for the additional 5,000 non healthcare places, the details of which were published on 1 June, is for one year only. The intention is that it is simple, competitive, and places minimal burden on higher education providers.
The Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) Year Four data was used, as it provides a comprehensive overview of quality measures for higher education providers in England, including continuation and high-skilled employment and further study metrics. It is publicly available and requires no additional aggregation or calculation, ensuring transparency. Other data sources are or will be available, but do not average across multiple years of data as is done in TEF.
The combination of the continuation rate of =90 per cent and the skilled employment/further study rate of =75 per cent as minimum qualifying thresholds, ensures that the 5,000 places are awarded on a competitive basis, by restricting eligibility to only the top performing providers.
The methodology used for student number controls more broadly, already allows for the substantial growth forecast by the sector, plus another 5%. This allows providers to increase their student numbers compared to previous years.