It was this week that the Higher Education Policy Institute published a new report, Evolution of Devolution: How Higher Education Policy Has Diverged Across the Four Nations of the UK (HEPI Report 181), marking 25 years since the devolution of powers to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Edited by HEPI’s Director of Policy and Advocacy, Rose Stephenson, the report offers a detailed analysis of how higher education policies have evolved in the UK’s four nations, including the differences in funding models, student mobility, and policy responses to regional needs.
This report is sponsored by The Education Group London and contains insights from some of the leaders in this area of research, including Dr Lucy Hunter Blackburn, Dewi Knight, Dr Sarah Morse, Dr Edward Hicks, Dr Emma Wisby, Meadhbh Keating Fitzpatrick, and Professor James Miller, who identify the unique approaches to policy that have unfolded in each country over this quarter century. Scotland has adopted the free-tuition model, while the Welsh have opted for integrated post-16 education. For England, graduate contributions are relied on the most, and Northern Ireland continues to have lower tuition fees.
The report identifies funding divergence as a key area where the nations have gone in different directions. For example, England relies on graduate contributions more than Scotland and Northern Ireland rely on lower tuition costs. The most generous maintenance support for students is in Wales. Cross-border dynamics are also considered in the report. There is significant movement of students between nations despite the fact that the policies are quite different, which highlights the interconnection of the UK’s higher education system.
One of the report’s more interesting recommendations comes from Dewi Knight and Dr Sarah Morse, who recommend that Wales establish a postgraduate-only advanced research institution, which would be aligned with national economic and innovation priorities, along the lines of Cranfield University, to become a Future Generations Lab co-developed by government, sector, and industry.
Other contributions address issues such as Northern Ireland’s Maximum Aggregate Student Number (MASN) cap, which limits the funding that can be generated sustainably, and the stable government funding model for Scotland’s higher education. Dr. Emma Wisby, when discussing England, addresses this with the political rhetoric used for a tertiary approach to higher education-the possible impact on devolution and inter-regional collaboration in particular.
Editor Rose Stephenson stresses the special opportunity devolution has opened up for experimentation in higher education policy across the UK. The report will encourage further debate and sector-wide collaboration, providing insights valuable to policymakers, academics, and students.
