Scottish Funding Council reveals growth in university teaching and research budgets for next year
Universities in Scotland will see a small funding increase in the 2020-21 academic year as they grapple with the “unprecedented” impact of the coronavirus. The news comes at a time when universities in England are looking anxiously at projected losses of income in the next academic year.
Funding allocations for Scottish universities in 2020-21 reveal overall funding for teaching has risen by 3.1 per cent to £681.3 million—including an extra £4.7 million for pension payments to the Scottish Teachers Superannuation Scheme— while the total research and innovation budget has grown 1.8 per cent to £240.3m.
The Scottish Funding Council, which sets budgets for universities, said its allocations would “help provide some stability for the university sector” during the coronavirus pandemic. It also promised to keep existing payment processes to “ensure funds continue to flow to universities” trying to weather the disruption caused by Covid-19.
“We are working through unprecedented times, given the current global coronavirus outbreak. It is also a rapidly shifting environment for students, staff and the communities around us,” wrote Lorna McDonald, director of finance at the SFC, in a letter outlining allocations for 2020-21.
Around half of Scotland’s universities saw a fall in funding in 2019-20, but this year budgets have mostly increased. The University of Edinburgh saw its total grant allocation grow from £154.3m to £157.4m, while the University of Glasgow grew its total grants from £143.8m to £147.3m.
At the University of St Andrews overall funding rose from £35.5m to £36.7m, the University of Stirling saw an increase from £42.5m to £44.4m and Strathclyde University’s funding grew from £93.9m to £95.2m.
Elsewhere, McDonald said guidance on priorities for the SFC given by further education, higher education and science minister Richard Lochhead in July 2019 still stands. No new ministerial guidance has been given so far this year, but the council said it would publish letters once received.
In England, the Office for Students has suspended many regulatory requirements for higher education providers and is concentrating on reporting of the short-term financial sustainability of institutions.