With the General Election announced and the result confirmed in July, we have decided to move the online Governor session from 17 October to three in-person events, as follows and open for registration:

While James Aston will present each session, we are delighted to advise that with Susan Lapworth (Chief Executive, Office for Students) will be our guest speaker on 24 October.

Similar sector updates have been running for a number of years and, given the timing, this is a great opportunity to meet in person, discuss the emerging policy issues and sector challenges and engage with BDO colleagues, colleagues from other institutions and (London only) Susan.

The update is aimed at Governors, University Secretaries and members of VCE. The session is completely different, though complementary, to the ‘The Effective (HEI) Audit Committee’ online session on Thursday 10 October 2024.

The dust will have settled, summer recess will be over and policies will start to take shape. Recruitment will have solidified (UG returners and new Y1) and international numbers will be visible. Going concern will remain front of mind for a number of boards and a new (or at least modified) five year strategy will be in the back of everyone’s thinking.

James Aston MBE, National Head of Education, will bring to life some of the current sector challenges drawing on his sector experience. He has been the audit partner to 25 HEIs over the last 20 years and is a well-known adviser in the sector.

Susan Lapworth, Chief Executive (Office for Students), will explore some of the ongoing sector issues from the position of Regulator. She is responsible for delivering the strategy set by the OfS’ board, and ensuring that the OfS operates efficiently and effectively. She is an executive member of the OfS board.

These will be 45 minute sessions of reality checking/horizon scanning followed by 15 minutes of questions and answers.