CentreForum's response to the drop in university applicants for 2012 entry
31 January 2012
On Monday UCAS released figures showing an 8.7 percent drop in university applicants for 2012 entry. CentreForum's education researcher Gill Wyness said the figures were "disappointing, but to be expected. We saw similar trends in 1998, when fees were first introduced, and in 2006, when they were increased to £3,000 per year. Application numbers were up in 2011 as many students sought to avoid the tuition fees hike. The test here will be whether applications recover in 2013."
Tier 4 tears: how government student visa controls are destroying the private HE sector
Chris NicholsonIn this report, CentreForum calls for the reversal of student visa controls which prohibit international students enrolled on HE courses at private colleges from working part time to support their studies.
Since these controls were introduced in 2011, enrolment numbers are estimated to have dropped by around 70 percent. One private institution, Cavendish College London, has already closed, while others face being taken over by public universities.
CentreForum had previously warned government about the adverse impact of the Tier 4 student visa reforms. It is now concerned that the impact has been "swift and probably even more devastating than was predicted."
Download the full report.
See earlier CentreForum publications 'Tier 4 Fears: why government student visa proposals are unfair' (June 2011) and 'Pathway to prosperity: how to make student immigration work for universities and the economy' (February 2011)
Nick Clegg speech on 'responsible capitalism'
16 January 2012
Nick Clegg delivered a keynote speech to CentreForum and the City of London Corporation.
See coverage of the event on the BBC, Sky, Guardian, Independent and Telegraph.
The full text of the speech can be accessed here.
Employee empowerment: towards greater workplace democracy
There is strong evidence that giving employees more of a voice in the firm that employs them is of benefit to both the firm and the employees. Just as important is the democratic case: employees have a fundamental right to be involved in key decisions that affect their lives.
Boosting employee participation should therefore be an integral part of the coalition's growth strategy of supply-side reforms.
In this report, CentreForum sets out a package of measures that the government should consider to promote employee empowerment and workplace democracy.
Download the full report.
"Increased employee participation in how companies are run has been a longstanding Liberal Democrat principle, and CentreForum offers some radical proposals for how this can be promoted. Their paper deserves serious consideration."
- Rt Hon Nick Clegg MP, Deputy Prime Minister
"There is strong evidence that the combination of employee empowerment and employee share ownership can help boost company performance. The CentreForum paper makes a powerful case for why this should be embraced as part of the coalition government's growth strategy of long term suppy-side reforms."
- Ed Davey MP, Minister of State for Employment Relations, Consumer and Postal Affairs
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CentreForum Blog
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It’s official: waivers and bursaries don’t attract students – Tim Leunig
The data are out. We know how many people applied to each university, and how much that has changed since the previous year. We also know how much each university...
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Calculating how the benefit cap cuts – Tim Leunig
Today I published an analysis of the government’s £26,000 benefits cap for people out of work. It makes for grim reading. After basic expenses – rent, council tax and utilities...
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Should we be convinced by the Busan aid ‘agreement’? Benjamin Halfpenny
Held between 29 November and 1 December 2011 in Busan, South Korea, the fourth high-level forum on aid effectiveness ended on a high. After a tense start and difficult negotiations,...
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