A more joined-up and inclusive sector in Wales

The new Plan, which was consulted on publicly in September and October 2024, sets out Medr’s ambitions for a collaborative sector that delivers high-quality learning and research, meeting the needs of the economy and society, improving participation rates in tertiary education, and creating more flexible pathways for learners.

Since that process started, the financial crisis in universities across Wales has intensified. Is that intensification reflected in the changes?

Financial accountability and fiscal constraints: The final version does have an explicit recognition of significant public funding responsibilities and fiscal constraints, clearer commitments to data-informed decisions and transparent resource management and an emphasis on monitoring the financial sustainability of providers. Solutions, not so much.

Enhanced collaboration across the sector: The final version also has a greater emphasis on collaboration with Regional Skills Partnerships, employers, and local communities. There’s a more clearly articulated expectation for providers to engage actively in their civic mission and measure its impact, and explicit encouragement of collaboration between providers, government, industry, and investors to boost economic outcomes, and a focus on supporting spin-out companies and new businesses emerging from tertiary sector research.

Learner voice forum: Both documents commit to establishing a learner voice forum, but the final plan gives it enhanced prominence by explicitly stating it will shape Medr’s decision-making, embedding student perspectives more centrally within policy formation​. Although as OfS has learned, a committee is not the same as a strategy, and the “student interest” is harder to discern than holding some meetings. And OfS only has HE to worry about.

Awareness of global opportunities: The final more Taithy version specifically introduces commitments to ensure that learners and staff are aware of global opportunities for study, volunteering, and work – enhancing learner engagement beyond local contexts and raising learners’ global perspectives​ (at just the point that Plaid are preparing to argue that Wales’ more generous maintenance loans should be restricted to those who choose to stay and study in Wales).

Comprehensive mental health and welfare framework: The draft took instructions from ministers and cues from the legislation and proposed a common framework for mental health and wellbeing – the final version elaborates significantly, embedding this within regulatory conditions explicitly designed to enhance existing practice around mental health, learner and staff welfare, and broader wellbeing support​.

Explicit tackling of discrimination and harassment: The final plan also introduces clear regulatory expectations explicitly aimed at eliminating discrimination, harassment, victimisation, and explicitly addressing gender-based violence and abuse – significantly expanding the previous general commitment to equality of opportunity​.

Clearer pathways and flexibility: The draft aimed to create clear pathways and enhance flexibility – the final plan emphasises more explicitly coherent and flexible approaches to lifelong learning. It directly acknowledges the importance of adult community learning, promising a specific review of its planning, accessibility, and effectiveness to boost participation – particularly addressing the needs of adults​.

Increased specificity around reducing barriers: The final version moves beyond general ambitions around reducing barriers, articulating explicit steps and targets to increase participation from underrepresented groups, acknowledging economic, social, cultural, and organisational barriers explicitly.

Civic: The final version also includes an increased emphasis on civic mission – encouraging providers to actively measure and demonstrate their local and national community impact​

Quality framework implementation and alignment: The final version builds on the original proposal by explicitly stating that the quality framework will align with international standards (a little dig at England/OfS there) and necessary inspection frameworks.

Defined performance indicators: Both plans propose performance indicators – but the final document highlights a commitment to consulting on and defining these indicators more precisely, with a clearer focus on continuous improvement and distinct targets reflecting the diverse needs and circumstances of learners across the sector​.

Burden: Oh, and there are clearer and more explicit commitments to reduce bureaucracy and administrative burden, especially in data collection and regulatory compliance​.

Generally, where the draft made a raft of promises that had a date attached, now most of the deadlines are gone – and instead we’ll get an operational plan with those in.

That may suggest further slippage to what has already been an astonishingly long gestation period for the new body – perhaps to account for curveballs like the loss of its CEO, and being suddenly asked to review subject provision in universities across Wales.

A small sector (and regulator) ought to be able to avoid being slow and then having to be pushed around by ministers when the press and public get upset about something before it’s had chance to pick it up. The jury’s still out on whether Medr will become the speedboat that’s needed, or will lapse into the sleepy little cruise ship that HEFCW came to look like.