Professor Diana Beech and Professor André Spicer’s HEPI report highlights key pressures on UK universities
By Chris Lines (PR & Communications Manager), Published
Higher education institutions in the UK are facing growing constraints, squeezed on six sides by regulation, financial pressures, demographic shifts, and competition from alternative education routes. A new HEPI Debate Paper, ‘Universities are boxed in: Is there a way out?’, by Professors Diana Beech and André Spicer of City St George’s, University of London, sets out to diagnose these challenges and offer solutions for policymakers, governors, and university leaders.
The report, which also contains a foreword by Professor Ian Jacobs, Chair of Council at City St George’s, highlights six key pressures boxing universities in:
- Increasing regulation impacting institutional autonomy.
- Rising costs, both visible and hidden.
- Falling income per domestic student, exacerbating financial strains.
- Uncertainty in international student recruitment due to changing visa policies and global competition.
- Growing alternatives to university education, from apprenticeships to online learning.
- A shrinking youth population, both in the UK and key international student markets.
A strategic wake-up call
Professor Beech, co-author of the report, urged university leaders to recognise the urgency of the situation.
She said:
Her co-author, Professor Spicer, emphasised that universities must think proactively about their response.
He said:
Options for universities
Rather than simply outlining the problem, the paper presents actionable recommendations across three stakeholder groups – university leaders, governors, and policymakers. Among the proposed solutions, university leaders are encouraged to build a coalition for change, embrace innovative thinking, and take multilayered action, balancing strategic, operational, and financial adjustments.
Governors, meanwhile, are advised to reassess institutional missions, redefine their risk appetite, and explore alternative governance models, such as mergers or cooperative structures. The merger of City, University of London and St George’s, University of London into City St George’s, University of London, is cited as a prime example of strategic consolidation.
For policymakers, the report calls for more flexible regulation tailored to different types of universities, better funding mechanisms, and immigration policies that support talent retention. The authors’ final recommendation is to reunite research and higher education under a single ministerial portfolio within a business-focused department to align education with economic growth.
Learning from other sectors
The report stresses that higher education is not unique in facing major industry-wide disruption. Lessons can be drawn from fields such as retail, automotive manufacturing, and public services, where organisations have successfully navigated moments of transformation through innovation and adaptation.
Professor Spicer said that universities must embrace this mindset:
“Higher education appears to be facing a moment of profound transformation. Instead of thinking they are utterly unique, leaders in the sector should try to learn from moments of transformation in other sectors. This might help institutions identify how they can move forward in profoundly challenging circumstances.”
Moving forward
The HEPI report serves as both a warning and a roadmap for UK higher education institutions. Without bold leadership and strategic reform, universities risk stagnation or decline. Yet with purposeful action, innovation, and partnership with government, they have the opportunity to reclaim their position as engines of societal advancement and research excellence.
Professor Beech added:
“As a governor, academic leader and former policymaker myself, I have watched the ‘HE box’ develop apace from various perspectives. Yet while the box is real, it is not inevitable.
“With bold leadership and a reimagined compact with government, the sector can move beyond survival and reclaim its role as a cornerstone of national prosperity and innovation.”
For university leaders, the message is clear: decisive change must come now if institutions are to thrive in the next chapter of UK higher education.
Read the full HEPI Debate Paper.
Read Professor Diana Beech's blog on the paper.
