The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) both have overall budgets in excess of £6 billion and are responsible for funding prescribed and non-prescribed higher education respectively in further education colleges. Neither body has planning responsibilities for higher education since we believe that, instead of a planned approach, every higher education provider must establish and sustain a competitive position in strong markets. However, LSC and HEFCE staff meet regularly with the Department to explore how partnership working can be enhanced across a range of areas, including student progression from further to higher education, which is important as we increase and widen participation.
The Higher Education Funding Council for England spent 0.004 per cent. of their budget on management consultants in the last financial year.