Message from Alan Langlands, Chief Executive (December 2012)

07 December 2012

In November, I was invited to speak to the European Association of Conservatoires’ Annual Congress in St Petersburg on the subject of regulation and the arts. Closer to home, I also met a number of vice-chancellors of north-west universities at the University of Manchester, to discuss areas of interest to them such as HEFCE’s future role and current challenges for the sector, and visited the Royal Northern College of Music and Manchester Metropolitan University.

HEFCE’s annual meeting on 22 November was an opportunity for HE governors and others to hear about and discuss key priorities for HEFCE and the higher education sector: student interest, economic growth and regulation in higher education.

The success of the first round of the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF) has led the Government to announce an additional £200 million for the fund. Higher education institutions will be able to submit proposals for a second UKRPIF bidding round until 11 February.

We have announced the third round of the Revolving Green Fund, with £20 million available from 2013. As with previous rounds, the fund provides recoverable grants for small-scale energy efficiency projects starting after 1 May 2013.

HEFCE and the Office for Fair Access have published correspondence with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, setting out our joint approach to building a national strategy for student success and support. This includes our intention to carry out additional research to improve the evidence base for effective strategies to widen participation in higher education.

Page last updated 7 December 2012