Legislation – Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022

New Search

Introduction

PART 1
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR TERTIARY EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

1 Establishment of the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research

2 Promoting life-long learning

3 Promoting equality of opportunity

4 Encouraging participation in tertiary education

5 Promoting continuous improvement in tertiary education

6 Promotion of research and innovation

7 Promoting collaboration and coherence in tertiary education and research

8 Contributing to a sustainable and innovative economy

9 Promoting tertiary education through the medium of Welsh

10 Promoting a civic mission

11 Promoting a global outlook

12 Promoting collaboration between providers of tertiary education and trade unions

13 Statement of strategic priorities

14 Strategic plan for the Commission

15 Approval, publication and implementation of strategic plan

16 Review of strategic plan

17 Academic freedom of higher education providers and staff

18 Institutional autonomy of tertiary education providers

19 Compatibility with charity law and governing documents of tertiary education providers

20 Guidance

21 The Welsh Ministers’ power to give general directions

22 Additional functions of the Commission

23 Dissolution of the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales

24 Transfer schemes

PART 2
REGISTRATION AND REGULATION OF TERTIARY EDUCATION PROVIDERS

CHAPTER 1 REGISTRATION OF TERTIARY EDUCATION PROVIDERS

The register and registration procedure

25 The register

26 Registration procedure

Registration conditions

27 Initial registration conditions

28 General ongoing registration conditions

29 Specific ongoing registration conditions

30 Proportionate conditions etc.

31 Mandatory ongoing registration conditions for each registered provider

32 Mandatory ongoing registration condition on fee limits

33 Mandatory ongoing registration conditions on equal opportunity

34 Power to provide for further mandatory ongoing registration conditions

35 Commission duty to give guidance about ongoing registration conditions

Monitoring and enforcement of registration conditions

36 Commission duty to monitor compliance with ongoing registration conditions

37 Advice and assistance in respect of compliance with ongoing registration conditions

38 Reviews relevant to compliance with ongoing registration conditions

39 Directions in respect of failure to comply with ongoing registration conditions

40 Supplementary provision about directions under section 39

De-registration

41 De-registration

42 De-registration: procedure

43 Voluntary de-registration and de-registration with consent

44 Change of registration category without application

Registration decision reviews

45 Registration decision reviews

Fee limit statements

46 Requirements of a fee limit statement

47 Approval of fee limit statement

48 Publication of approved fee limit statement

49 Validity of contracts

CHAPTER 2 QUALITY ASSURANCE AND IMPROVING QUALITY

General quality assurance functions

50 Quality assurance frameworks

51 Duty to monitor, and promote improvement in, the quality of regulated tertiary education

52 Advice and assistance in respect of quality of tertiary education

53 Reviews relevant to quality of tertiary education

Assessment of quality in higher education

54 Assessment of quality of higher education

55 Action plans following assessments under section 54

56 Exercise of higher education assessment functions by a designated body

Inspection of further education or training etc.

57 Duty of the Chief Inspector to inspect and report

58 Power of the Chief Inspector to inspect and report

59 Duty to provide information and advice to the Commission

60 Duty to provide information and advice to the Welsh Ministers

61 Additional functions of the Chief Inspector

62 Action plans following inspections by the Chief Inspector

63 Area inspections

64 Right of entry and offences

65 Surveys and studies

66 Annual reports

67 Annual plan of the Chief Inspector

68 Funding of inspections and reports on further education and training etc.

CHAPTER 3 FURTHER ENFORCEMENT AND PROCEDURAL PROVISIONS

Intervention in the conduct of further education institutions

69 Grounds for intervention

70 Powers to intervene

71 Notification by the Commission of grounds for intervention

72 Welsh Ministers’ statement on intervention powers

Access to information and facilities

73 Duty to co-operate

74 Powers of entry and inspection

Warning and review procedure

75 Application of sections 76 to 78

76 Proposed notices and directions: requirement to give warning notice

77 Information to be given with notices and directions and effect pending review

78 Review of notices and directions

79 Decision reviewer

Miscellaneous duties

80 Duty to monitor and report on financial sustainability

81 Commission’s statement on intervention functions

Directions

82 Effect and enforcement of directions

CHAPTER 4 GENERAL

83 Designation of other providers of tertiary education

84 Interpretation of Part 2

PART 3
SECURING AND FUNDING TERTIARY EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

85 Power of the Welsh Ministers to fund the Commission

86 Funding the Commission: limitations on terms and conditions

87 Policy on funding powers

88 Financial support to specified providers for higher education

89 Financial support for higher education courses specified in regulations

90 Financial support under sections 88 and 89: terms and conditions

91 Financial support under sections 88 and 89: supplementary

92 Financial support by Welsh Ministers for certain higher education courses

93 Education and training for persons aged 16 to 19

94 Education and training for eligible persons over 19

95 Education and training for persons over 19

96 Requirements on Commission when securing further education and training

97 Financial support for further education or training

98 Financial support for further education or training: further provision

99 Financial resources for further education or training: terms and conditions

100 Means tests

101 School sixth-forms

102 Persons with additional learning needs

103 Financial support for other activities connected to tertiary education

104 Financial support for apprenticeships

105 Financial support for research and innovation

106 Financial support for research and innovation: terms and conditions

107 The Commission’s other functions in relation to research and innovation

108 Financial support under sections 89, 97 and 104: further provision about terms and conditions

109 Consent for payments to collaborating bodies‍

110 Financial support directions

PART 4
APPRENTICESHIPS

111 Meaning of “approved Welsh apprenticeship”

112 Meaning of “approved Welsh apprenticeship agreement”

113 Meaning of “alternative Welsh apprenticeship”

114 Meaning of “apprenticeship framework”

115 Specification of requirements in relation to approved Welsh apprenticeship

116 Consultation by Welsh Ministers about specifications

117 Preparation and publication of apprenticeship frameworks

118 Register of apprenticeship frameworks

119 Power to issue apprenticeship certificates

120 Delegation of Commission functions

121 Ineffective provisions of approved Welsh apprenticeship agreements

122 Status of approved Welsh apprenticeship agreements

123 Transfer of copyright in apprenticeship frameworks

124 Crown servants

125 Interpretation of Part 4

PART 5
LEARNER PROTECTION, COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES AND LEARNER ENGAGEMENT

126 Learner protection plans

127 Complaints procedures

128 Qualifying institutions for student complaints scheme

129 Learner Engagement Code

PART 6
INFORMATION, ADVICE AND GUIDANCE

130 Information and advice from the Commission and information from the Welsh Ministers

131 Persons required to provide information to the Commission

132 Powers to share information

133 Power to require application-to-acceptance information

134 Use of application-to-acceptance information for research purposes

135 Other information, advice and guidance

136 Research by the Commission or the Welsh Ministers

PART 7
MISCELLANEOUS AND GENERAL

137 Instruments of government of higher education corporations in Wales

138 Articles of government of higher education corporations in Wales

139 Dissolution of higher education corporations in Wales

140 Duty to consult the Commission on careers services

141 Data Protection

142 Publication

143 Regulations

144 General interpretation

145 Power to provide for the Open University to be treated as a tertiary education provider in Wales

146 Power to make consequential and transitional provision etc.

147 Minor and consequential amendments

148 Coming into force

149 Short title

SCHEDULES

SCHEDULE 1 COMMISSION FOR TERTIARY EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

SCHEDULE 2 TRANSFERS OF PROPERTY AND STAFF TO THE COMMISSION

SCHEDULE 3 ASSESSING HIGHER EDUCATION: DESIGNATED BODY

SCHEDULE 4 MINOR AND CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS

Changes to legislation:

There are outstanding changes not yet made by the legislation.gov.uk editorial team to Tertiary Education and Research (Wales) Act 2022. Any changes that have already been made by the team appear in the content and are referenced with annotations. Help about Changes to Legislation

Close

Changes to Legislation

Changes and effects yet to be applied by the editorial team are only applicable when viewing the latest version or prospective version of legislation. They are therefore not accessible when viewing legislation as at a specific point in time. To view the ‘Changes to Legislation’ information for this provision return to the latest version view using the options provided in the ‘What Version’ box above.

PART 2REGISTRATION AND REGULATION OF TERTIARY EDUCATION PROVIDERS

CHAPTER 1REGISTRATION OF TERTIARY EDUCATION PROVIDERS

The register and registration procedure

25The register

(1)

The Commission must establish and maintain a register of tertiary education providers in Wales (referred to in this Act as “the register”).

(2)

The Welsh Ministers must, by regulations, specify one or more categories of registration for which the Commission must make provision in the register.

(3)

A category of registration specified in the regulations must relate to the provision of one or more kinds of tertiary education.

(4)

The Commission must register a tertiary education provider in a category of the register if—

(a)

its governing body applies for it to be registered in the category,

(b)

it is a tertiary education provider in Wales,

(c)

it provides, or has provided on its behalf, the kind of tertiary education that relates to the category,

(d)

it satisfies the initial registration conditions applicable to it in respect of the registration sought (see section 27),

(e)

registration is not prohibited by provision made in regulations under subsection (5), and

(f)

the application complies with any requirements imposed under subsection (7).

(5)

The Welsh Ministers may, by regulations, prohibit the registration of a tertiary education provider in one category of the register at the same time that it is registered in one or more of the other categories.

(6)

The Commission must not register a tertiary education provider in the register otherwise than—

(a)

in a category of registration specified in regulations under subsection (2);

(b)

in accordance with subsection (4), section 44 (change in registration category without application) and any regulations made under subsection (5).

(7)

The Commission may determine—

(a)

the form of an application for registration,

(b)

the information to be contained in it or provided with it, and

(c)

the way in which an application is to be submitted.

(8)

The Welsh Ministers may, by regulations, make provision about the information which must be contained in a tertiary education provider’s entry in the register.

(9)

Once registered, a tertiary education provider’s ongoing registration in a category of the register is subject to the provider satisfying—

(a)

the general ongoing registration conditions applicable to the provider’s registration in the category and as they may be later revised (see section 28), and

(b)

the specific ongoing registration conditions (if any) imposed on it in that category of registration and as they may be later varied (see section 29).

(10)

References in this Part to the ongoing registration conditions of a tertiary education provider are to the conditions mentioned in subsection (9)(a) and (b).

(11)

The Commission must make the information contained in the register, and the information previously contained in it, publicly available by such means as it considers appropriate.

26Registration procedure

(1)

Before refusing an application to register a tertiary education provider in a category of the register, the Commission must notify the governing body of the provider that it proposes to do so.

(2)

The notice must specify—

(a)

the Commission’s reasons for proposing to refuse to register the tertiary education provider in the category,

(b)

the period during which the governing body of the provider may make representations about the proposal (“the specified period”), and

(c)

the way in which those representations may be made.

(3)

The specified period must not be less than 28 days beginning with the date on which the notice is received.

(4)

The Commission must have regard to any representations made by the governing body of the tertiary education provider in accordance with the notice in deciding whether to register it in the category.

(5)

Having decided whether or not to register the tertiary education provider in the category, the Commission must notify the governing body of the provider of its decision.

(6)

Where the decision is to register the tertiary education provider in the category, the notice must specify—

(a)

the date of entry in the register in the category, and

(b)

the ongoing registration conditions applicable to the provider’s registration in the category at that time.

(7)

Where the decision is to refuse to register the provider in the category, the notice must specify—

(a)

the grounds for the refusal,

(b)

information as to the right of review, and

(c)

the period specified in regulations under section 79(4)(c) within which an application for a review may be made.