The funding system for England's universities of tuition fees and repayments is the "worst of both worlds", says an independent study. The Higher Education Commission has cast doubt on the long-term financial sustainability of the current system. Read More

As part of the Government’s National Scholarship Programme (NSP), HEFCE commissioned CFE consultants and the Widening Participation Centre at Edge Hill University to carry out a formative evaluation of the scheme. This report summarises the outcomes of evaluation activity undertaken in 2013-14, the second year of the programme’s operation. It contains the results of surveys, focus groups and interviews with participating institutions and recipients as well as summarising the programme’s emerging...

The UK's economic recovery could be "constrained" by a lack of engineering skills, warns a government adviser. Prof John Perkins, chief scientific adviser at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has identified "a substantial demand for engineers". Read More

University students from poorer homes are more likely to drop out and less likely to achieve a good degree than those from richer homes, research says. Read More

Men in the UK who were born to lowly educated parents earn 20 per cent less, on average, than the sons of graduates – even when they hold the same qualifications. This striking example of how inequality can be transmitted from one generation to the next has emerged from an analysis of the educational qualifications and occupational incomes of men in 24 countries. Read More

At Clacton Coastal academy (CCA), the pupils are proud of their town and their school. They are fed up with The Only Way is Essex and upset by some of the sneering coverage the recent by election attracted to their town. Lots of them are ambitious; many want to go to university. Yet the challenges facing children here are great, and the barriers to educational achievement are many. Read More

Head teachers want primary school pupils to learn more about the links between learning and the world of work. More than 1,000 schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have signed up to a project putting them in touch with local employers. Read More

One big idea has arrived and another big idea has been abandoned. The big (bad) idea that has arrived is that high student fees are inevitable, and the (good) one that has been abandoned is so-called “widening participation”. Read more

A student has launched her own campaign to support some of those penalised by tough immigration rules. Read More

Deciding school admissions on distance between home and school is a major driver of educational inequality between rich and poor, say researchers. Read More