New value for money rules ‘disproportionate’, say universities

English universities have questioned proposed new rules aimed at ensuring students are being treated fairly, saying they go “way beyond” existing consumer protection laws. 

Earlier this year, the Office for Students (OfS) proposed an ongoing condition of registration that would require every university and college to treat its students “fairly in relation to its higher education provision and the services that support it”.

The new rules – known as Condition C6 – would require institutions to publish a suite of documents on their websites explaining their student protection arrangements, including policies related to course changes, information on complaints, refunds and compensation, and details of agents who work on behalf of an institution. 

The changes, which are out for consultation, have been put forward after some universities were criticised for not delivering courses in a way that was promised to students but sector groups have raised concerns that the new proposals are “disproportionate”. 

“Our members are absolutely committed to treating students fairly, and they fully support the principle behind this consultation,” said Vanessa Wilson, chief executive of University Alliance. 

“However, we are concerned that the proposed condition introduces a new regulatory power that goes way beyond existing consumer protection law, with the OfS effectively setting its own, unclear test of ‘fairness’.”

The OfS said that the proposals will help ensure students get the “value for money and higher education experience promised to them by their institutions”. 

But Wilson said there are “serious questions about proportionality”.

Echoing these concerns, MillionPlus chief executive Rachel Hewitt said her members had also questioned whether the new condition would strike “the right balance between protecting students and creating proportionate regulatory requirements”. 

“The proposed duty to ‘treat students fairly’ is broad and open to interpretation, and providers will need much greater clarity about what constitutes fair treatment in practice before they can be confident they are complying,” she said.

Data suggests students are increasingly seeking financial redress as a result of dissatisfaction with their university experience. Last year the higher education ombudsman ordered universities in England and Wales to pay out nearly £2 million in compensation  – a figure that doesn’t include payments made to students who didn’t reach the adjudication stage.

Wilson added that the scope of the new condition is “extremely broad, covering prospective, current and former students, with elements that may apply retrospectively, as well as extending to third-party provision and ancillary services”. 

“This would be complex to define and challenging to implement consistently across the sector.” 

There are also concerns about the timeline proposed by the OfS for the changes. The regulator is running its consultation until 9 July and plans to publish its final decision in autumn 2026.

According to consultation documents, the requirement to treat students fairly would come into force “immediately” on publication of the outcomes of the consultation, while the requirement relating to the publication of university policies online would come into force three months later. 

“Expecting the new fairness duty to apply immediately following the consultation outcome, and allowing only a short period to implement the publication requirements, risks placing an unreasonable burden on providers before there is sufficient time to understand and operationalise the new framework,” said Hewitt. 

She said that publishing a comprehensive suite of student-facing documents could be a “substantial undertaking” for universities “delivering a diverse mix of programmes, partnerships, transnational education and ancillary services”. 

Wilson added that the proposals will “increase the regulatory burden without improving outcomes for students”. 

“We would like to see an approach that builds on existing frameworks and recognises the hard work universities are already doing to support and inform students.” 

helen.packer@timeshighereducation.com