Regulated to FailGet the book

The System That Cannot Pay For Itself

Chapter 4

Why Are The Big Numbers In Brackets?

Sources supporting this chapter, with the manuscript section they relate to and a note explaining how each item contributes.

12
Sources
1
Further reading
6
Chapter sections

Showing all 13 references

Evidence used

Sources

Material used to support factual claims and explanations in this chapter.

Source

Higher Education Estates Management Report 2024: Executive summary of the 2022/23 academic year

Association of University Directors of Estates. 17 January 2025

Used for the figures on property operating costs, energy costs, insurance costs, repairs and maintenance costs, capital expenditure below the 2019 level, estate condition ratings, evidence of maintenance backlog, and the operating pressures on university estates.

The costs that do not care about strategyThe estate that refuses to stay in the background
Open source

Source

Higher Education Estates Management Report 2025: Executive summary of the 2023/24 academic year

Association of University Directors of Estates. Published 2026

Used for the growth in the sector’s estate since 2019/20, AUDE’s conclusion about excess and poorly used space, and the time and upfront cost involved in disposal.

The estate that refuses to stay in the background
Open source

Source

Safety in high-rise residential buildings: accountable persons

UK Government

Used for the Building Safety Act 2022 regime applying to higher-risk residential buildings, including registration with the Building Safety Regulator and accountable-person duties for fire and structural safety.

The estate that refuses to stay in the background
Open source

Source

Financial sustainability of higher education providers in England: 2024

Office for Students. 16 May 2024

Used for the description of reliance on international student fee income to sustain publicly funded teaching, research and student support, and for the wider investment pressure on facilities and carbon reduction.

Chapter-wide context
Open source

Source

Financial sustainability of higher education providers in England: 2026

Office for Students. Updated 15 June 2026

Used for the staff-cost share of expenditure, the comparison of staff and non-staff costs, the reported increase in restructuring costs between 2023-24 and 2024-25, and the discussion of volatile recruitment, rising costs, deficits, liquidity and mitigating action.

The lever that bends the machine
Open source

Source

Changes to tuition fees: 2026 to 2027 academic year and 2027 to 2028 academic year

Department for Education. 26 November 2025

Used for the policy-set maximum undergraduate tuition fee limits for approved fee-cap providers in England and the 2026-27 and 2027-28 increases.

Not weather, climate
Open source

Source

Tuition fees in England: History, debates, and international comparisons

Joe Lewis, Paul Bolton and Siobhan Wilson, House of Commons Library. 23 February 2026

Used for the history of the English undergraduate fee cap and the long periods in which it was frozen in cash terms.

Not weather, climate
Open source

Source

Annual TRAC 2023-24: Sector summary and analysis by TRAC peer group

Office for Students

Used for the full economic cost recovery position of publicly funded teaching, non-publicly funded teaching and research, including the role of non-publicly funded teaching surplus.

The costs that do not care about strategy
Open source

Source

The challenge of regulatory burden

Universities UK. Last updated 29 October 2025

Used for Universities UK's summary of regulatory burden, including the definition of burden, the 17.6 FTE average, governing body time, the unavoidable nature of OfS registration for core university functions, and the assessment-retention cost estimate.

The work around the work
Open source

Source

Understanding the burden of regulation: Assessing the regulatory burden of ongoing registration with the Office for Students for universities in England

Moorhouse Consulting. 2023

Used for the source, scope and limitations of the UUK-commissioned regulatory burden research, including its self-reported evidence base, English UUK-member sample, variation by university size and 17.6 FTE estimate.

The work around the work
Open source

Source

Supplementary guidance: Retention of assessed work

Office for Students. 14 March 2024

Used to qualify the assessment-retention example, including the OfS expectation to retain appropriate records of assessed work for five years after the end date of a course and the possibility that a representative sample may be appropriate in some cases.

The work around the work
Open source

Source

Student protection plans

Office for Students

Used for the requirement that registered providers have student protection plans and for the expectation that plans include measures allowing existing students to complete their course, continue to access student finance, or transfer.

The lever that bends the machine
Open source

Go deeper

Further reading

Selected contextual material that extends or complements the chapter.

Further reading

Must do better: the Office for Students and the looming crisis facing higher education

House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee. 2023

Useful context on the financial sustainability of the sector, including cross-subsidy, the tuition fee cap, international student risk and the regulator's role.

Chapter-wide context
Open source