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The UK's only independent think tank devoted to higher education.

Blog

The HEPI Blog aims to make brief, incisive contributions to the higher education policy landscape. It is circulated to our subscribers and published online. We welcome guest submissions, which should follow our Instructions for Blog Authors. Submissions should be sent to our Blog Editor, Josh Freeman, at j.freeman@hepi.ac.uk.

  • Is this a ‘moment’ for addressing challenges faced by disabled students?

    3 February 2020 by Amy Low

    This blog was kindly contributed by Amy Low, Service Delivery Director at AbilityNet. AbilityNet is a technology and digital accessibility charity that supports disabled people to achieve their objectives at home, at work and in education. They provide a range of services for individuals and organisations including 1-1 support services,…

  • One year on from the Lambeth College and London South Bank University merger

    31 January 2020 by David Phoenix

    This blog was kindly contributed by Professor David Phoenix, Vice-Chancellor, London South Bank University One year ago today we received ministerial approval for the designation of a new subsidiary, South Bank Colleges (SBC), to deliver further education. That same day, Lambeth College in south London merged with SBC, becoming part…

  • Remembering Richard Garner

    28 January 2020 by Nick Hillman

    Today brought the very sad news that Richard Garner has died. He was once the UK’s longest serving education correspondent, having worked on the Birmingham Evening Mail, the Times Educational Supplement, the Mirror and the Independent between 1980 and 2016 and, afterwards, he continued to write a column for the Times Educational Supplement. His book, The Thirty…

  • 2020: the year of value?

    28 January 2020 by Rachel Hewitt

    While there are always plenty of topics to be grappling with in higher education, there tends to be one issue that dominates the discussion. For 2019 this was the Augar review, despite the fact the independent panel was originally due to report in 2018. Throughout the year those of us…

  • Articulating value : creating a compelling narrative

    27 January 2020 by Kim Ansell

    This blog was kindly contributed by Kim Ansell, Senior Advisor at Advance HE. It is the first of three blogs we will be running this week on the theme of value. In a time of increasing uncertainty and public scrutiny, higher education is facing an unprecedented challenge to articulate value…

  • Iain Mansfield responds to today’s paper on social mobility and grammar schools

    23 January 2020 by Iain Mansfield

    This blog was written by Iain Mansfield, the author of the HEPI Occasional Paper The Impact of Selective Secondary Education on Progression to Higher Education (2019), a report written in a personal capacity prior to him taking up his current role. The paper published today by HEPI is, in parts,…

  • Five ways careers services can expose students to opportunities in digital technology

    22 January 2020 by Riddi Viswanathan

    This blog is by Riddi Viswanathan, a graduate entrepreneur leading Generation Purple, which aims to enhance diversity in graduate recruitment through gaming technology. As a graduate entrepreneur who has recently entered the digital technology sector, I am thrilled by the opportunities on offer, especially for international students like me with…

  • A language crisis: four thoughts

    20 January 2020 by John Claughton

    John Claughton, former Chief Master of King Edward’s School, Birmingham offers some reflections on Megan Bowler’s recent report on the crisis in modern languages. Nestor, the king of sandy Pylos, is the grand old man of The Iliad. He has seen the passing of two generations of mankind and is…