OfS ‘cautious’ about harming university reputations, says chair

The Office for Students does not want to “inadvertently damage” universities’ reputations by publishing full information about which institutions are under enhanced monitoring, its chair has said.

Speaking exclusively to HE, Michael Barber said the regulator was “cautious” about undermining institutions’ ability to make positive changes, and had to balance the need for transparent regulation and institutional “privacy”.

Last week HE revealed that almost 200 institutions of roughly 350 on the OfS’s list of registered providers have been placed under enhanced monitoring, meaning the regulator believes they are at increased risk of breaching one or more conditions of registration.