UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson warns universities to end bogus, non-attending students on franchised degrees or risk losing funding under a crackdown.
As reported by The Telegraph, Bridget Phillipson warns of strict measures against universities enrolling bogus students with poor English skills.
Many foreign nationals with limited English are enrolling in university franchise courses to access visas and student loans, often without intending to complete their degrees.
Earlier this year, the Education Secretary raised concerns over exploitation and now says universities that fail to address it will lose student loan funding.
What did Bridget Phillipson say about fraud and poor oversight in UK Universities?
Bridget Phillipson warned that poor vetting of UK universities’ franchised degrees has allowed students to exploit the student finance system.
She said,
“We see students who lack the basic English required to complete their studies, consistently low attendance, and clear evidence of people signing up to courses just to access public funds.”
The Education Secretary labeled franchising “one of the biggest financial scandals” in UK higher education, citing its lack of regulation and accountability.
Ms Phillipson revealed that tuition fees will rise with inflation over the next two academic years, urging universities to improve standards in return.
She said,
“Franchising began with good intentions: when properly managed it can widen opportunity, help people study close to home, and support those balancing study with work or caring responsibilities.”
“But under the Conservatives the system has metastasised into an unregulated, unaccountable free for all that has threatened the hard-won reputation of our university sector,”
the Education Secretary added.
Ms Phillipson continued,
“The number of students on franchised courses has more than doubled in five years. Oversight, however, has not kept pace. More than half of franchised students are at providers not directly regulated by the Office for Students. That ends now. I have taken action to cut off funding to providers to stop abuse of public money.”
What did Vivienne Stern say about strengthening franchise standards?
Vivienne Stern MBE, Chief Executive of Universities UK, said,
“It is vital that franchise provision is underpinned by high and robust standards and we support this step, which will help to protect the higher education sector’s world-renowned reputation for quality.”
She added,
“UUK’s members have been taking extensive actions to tighten controls, and we have long championed the introduction of measures requiring franchise partners to register with the OfS.”
What did Philippa Pickford say about improving subcontracted higher education?
Office for Students, Director of Regulation, Philippa Pickford said,
“Today’s announcement will help ensure students studying under subcontractual arrangements are getting a high quality higher education, as well as giving taxpayers confidence that public funding is being used appropriately.”
She stated,
“We have been raising concerns about poor practices that have been exposed in some subcontractual arrangements for some time, and plan to announce a response to our own consultation on subcontractual arrangements in higher education in early 2026.”
Ms Pickford added,
“This summer, we also announced reforms to our registration process that will allow us to register institutions that will deliver high quality higher education and treat their students fairly.”
How did the UK Government plan to crack down on fraudulent university franchises?
UK universities are increasingly licensing their degree programs to smaller, mostly private institutions through franchise arrangements.
Through franchising, universities can expand student numbers without adding campus facilities or staff, offering a cost-effective growth approach amid economic uncertainty.
As part of the new government crackdown, ministers will target franchise programs where students lack English skills or frequently miss lectures, in order to address potential abuse.
Under the latest plans, the Office for Students will regulate franchised institutions with 300 or more students, which could lose access to student loans from 2028-29 if standards are not met.
According to the Student Loans Company, over half of the £4.1m in fraud identified in 2022-23 came from students enrolled in franchised degree programs.
A January government report found that 96 UK universities have franchise agreements with 341 institutions, 237 of which are not registered with the Office for Students.
The number of students at franchised institutions has risen to 138,000 in 2022-23 amid rapid sector growth.
Universities report that years of frozen tuition have worsened their finances, pushing them to secure extra resources to support core teaching.
The government is urging the higher education sector to stabilise finances after the OfS warned that 43% of English institutions face deficits this year.
Baroness Smith, the universities minister, will tell a higher education conference that years of poor management must now be addressed.
How many international students are enrolled in UK universities?
The latest official statistics for the academic year 2023/24 show 732,285 international students enrolled at UK higher education providers.
Students from three countries account for over half of the international student body. India (166,310 students) and China (149,855) are the top two sources, followed by Nigeria (57,505).
Tuition fees from all international students totaled £12.1 billion in 2023/24. This accounts for 23% of the total income for UK higher education providers. A significant majority of international students come to the UK for postgraduate studies.
