The Welsh Government has established an independent panel to review higher education in Wales, but questions are being raised about whether its membership can genuinely challenge the assumptions on which the current system is built.
Writing in his column, Dylan Jones-Evans argues that while the panel members are capable and experienced, the group may be too rooted in the institutions and networks that have shaped higher education policy for decades.
Panel Membership and Concerns
Those appointed have considerable experience in university leadership, higher education funding, regulation, governance, student finance and the wider education system. However, Jones-Evans suggests the panel may lack direct experience in private-sector investment, business creation and commercial transformation.
He also notes the absence of anyone with substantial experience of restructuring complex organisations outside education, and the lack of anyone under the age of 30 on the panel.
Financial Restrictions
The review's terms of reference require its recommendations to be fiscally neutral in relation to non-ring-fenced resource spending on higher education and student grants. This means proposals cannot increase the overall amount of Welsh Government resource funding covered by the restriction.
Jones-Evans questions whether this prevents the panel from examining scenarios where transitional funding could support restructuring or improve the commercialisation of research.
The Purpose of Welsh Higher Education
The column argues that the review risks focusing on making the existing university system financially sustainable, rather than considering what kind of university system Wales needs over the next 20 years.
The question is whether the panel is reviewing higher education to preserve the universities that already exist, or whether it is prepared to design the university system that Wales actually needs.
