Category: Report Announcements

  • New HEPI Policy Note: Views on University Governance

    New HEPI Policy Note: Views on University Governance

    Author:
    Professor Steven Jones on behalf of the Council for the Defence of British Universitie

    Published:

    HEPI’s new Policy Note finds striking consensus across the higher education community for more ethical, transparent and balanced university governance.

    Summarising responses to the draft Code of Ethical University Governance from the Council for the Defence of British Universities (CDBU), this Policy Note finds that 81% of the 129 submissions received endorse the principle of a new ethical code. This signals a widespread recognition that governance structures must better reflect the educational and public missions that universities serve.

    The revised CDBU Code directly responds to the concerns raised in the consultation and offers practical ways to reduce power imbalances, avoid insular decision-making and bring greater transparency to governor recruitment.

    For anyone interested in how universities can strengthen trust and increase transparency, the report makes for important reading. You can find the press release and link to the full text of the policy note here.

    The author of this report, and the author of a second report HEPI is publishing on governance in the run-up to Christmas will be at a free webinar on governance issues running on Thursday, 11 December 2025 from 10am to 11am. Sign up now to hear our speakers explore the key issues.

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  • New HEPI and the University of Central Lancashire Report: Student Working Lives

    New HEPI and the University of Central Lancashire Report: Student Working Lives

    Author:
    Professor Adrian Wright, Dr Mark Wilding, Mary Lawler and Martin Lowe

    Published:

    A new major report from HEPI and the University of Central Lancashire reveals the realities of UK student life and highlights how paid work is increasingly an everyday part of the student experience.

    Student Working Lives (HEPI Report 195), written by Professor Adrian Wright, Dr Mark Wilding, Mary Lawler, Martin Lowe, draws on extensive research to show how students are juggling study, employment and caring responsibilities in the midst of a deepening cost-of-living crisis. The findings paint a striking picture of students for whom paid work has become a necessity, not a choice. Findings suggest two-thirds of students work to cover their basic living costs, and 26% of students work to support their families.

    The report looks at the type of work students are employed in, as well as the impact this has on their study. It calls for systemic reform across the higher education sector to design a higher education that moves away from assuming a full-time residential model, and supports student realities.

    You can read the press release and access the full report here.

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  • New HEPI and University of London Report: Rethinking Placement: Increasing Clinical Placement Efficacy for a Sustainable NHS Future

    New HEPI and University of London Report: Rethinking Placement: Increasing Clinical Placement Efficacy for a Sustainable NHS Future

    Author:
    Professor Amanda Broderick and Robert Waterson

    Published:

    The NHS faces a growing clinical placement crisis that threatens the future of its workforce. A new HEPI and University of London report calls for bold, system-wide reform to ensure students get the real-world experience they need to deliver safe, high-quality care.

    HEPI and the University of London’s new report, Rethinking Placement: Increasing Clinical Placement Efficacy for a Sustainable NHS Future, which has been published with the support of the Council for Deans of Health, warns that the NHS cannot meet its ambitious workforce goals without bold reform of how students gain real-world experience. Co-authored by Professor Amanda Broderick and Robert Waterson of the University of East London, the report calls for a shift from simply creating more placements to delivering better ones—equitable, flexible, digitally enabled and aligned with the future of healthcare.

    Drawing on innovation across London and beyond, the authors propose practical steps including simulation-based learning, new supervision frameworks and community-based models that can expand capacity without compromising quality. With over 106,000 vacancies across secondary care, the report urges policymakers, universities and NHS providers to act now to secure a sustainable, skilled and compassionate workforce for the next decade and beyond.

    You can read the press release and access the full report here.

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  • New HEPI Debate Paper: Higher Education for a Sustainable Economy

    New HEPI Debate Paper: Higher Education for a Sustainable Economy

    Author:
    Professor Tim Blackman

    Published:

    Too many students studying full-time honours degrees at university are causing higher education to be ‘over-consumed’.

    A Call for Radical Reform: Higher Education for a Sustainable Economy by Professor Tim Blackman argues that full-time honours degrees were created when universities were small and elite institutions. They were rolled over into the modern mass system of higher education we have today, with little thought about the appropriateness and affordability of providing such a large volume of learning straight after school, with the educational content expected to last a lifetime.

    Instead, Professor Tim Blackman says more people need to be studying shorter courses, spreading the cost over time while encouraging lifelong updating of skills and knowledge.

    You can read the press release and access the full report here.

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  • ‘Right here, right now’: New report on how AI is transforming higher education

    ‘Right here, right now’: New report on how AI is transforming higher education

    Author:
    Edited by Dr Giles Carden and Josh Freeman

    Published:

    A new collection of essays, AI and the Future of Universities published by HEPI and the University of Southampton, edited by Dr Giles Carden and Josh Freeman, brings together leading voices from universities, industry and policy. The collection comes at a point when Artificial Intelligence (AI) is projected to have a profound and transformative impact on virtually every sector of society and the economy, driving changes that are both beneficial and challenging. The various pieces look at how AI is reshaping higher education – from strategy, teaching and assessment to research and professional services.

    You can read the press release and access the full report here.

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  • New HEPI Policy Note: Universities’ role in global conflict

    New HEPI Policy Note: Universities’ role in global conflict

    Author:
    HEPI

    Published:

    With the UK Government moving to a posture of ‘war fighting readiness’ amid intensifying global conflict, a new HEPI Policy Note warns higher education remains an untapped asset in national preparedness.

    The Wartime University: The role of Higher Education in Civil Readiness by Gary Fisher argues UK universities must be recognised as central pillars of national security and resilience. The paper highlights how higher education institutions represent a ‘composite capability’ to enhance and sustain civil readiness, spanning defence, health, skills, logistics and democratic continuity, but warns this potential remains under-recognised and poorly integrated into emergency planning frameworks.

    You can read the press release and access the full report here.

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