Madeleine Atkins has been one of the most controversial leaders of HEFCE in recent times. With HEFCE’s funding diminishing following the rise of fees, Atkins and her board took the decision to find a new role for the funding council come what may. Repeated battles for territory inside the sector and tension with the government has taken its toll on the beleaguered organisation which, having lost more battles than it won, will now be folded into the Office for Students. Last year we called it the ‘go hard or go home’ approach – admirable in some ways, but the task may have been simply impossible from the start with political and funding realities stacked up against forthright leader.
HEFCE won’t disappear altogether though – the best organisational memory and policy expertise is expected to be retained in the new system, and Atkins, although falling several places this year, will play a critical role in managing the transition in the coming period.