Yesterday, HESA released its UK Performance Indicators Experimental Statistics which combines data from both publicly funded and alternative HE providers to explore widening participating and non-continuation rates.
The data highlights that ‘11.5% of young full-time first degree undergraduates were from low participation neighbourhoods in 2015/16, and 90.2% were from state schools or colleges’.*
HESA has provided further information about the release, including the purpose:
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS EXPERIMENTAL STATISTICS RELEASE?
- The Code of Practice for Official Statistics defines Experimental Statistics as: “new official statistics undergoing evaluation. They are published in order to involve users and stakeholders in their development and as a means to build in quality at an early stage”. This Experimental Statistics release aims to explore the incorporation of HE students registered at alternative providers (APs) within the coverage of UKPIs.
- The UKPIs are Official Statistics which currently cover publicly funded higher education providers in the UK and one alternative provider, The University of Buckingham. In 2016/17 academic year, there were 116 APs delivering HE who held specific course designation in England and who are not covered by the UKPIs. The absence of HE students registered at APs from the coverage of the current UKPIs compromises an agreed principle for UKPIs that “UKPIs should normally seek to reflect the totality of higher education provision and institutions across the UK”.
- The HESA AP student record was collected for the first time in relation to 2014/15 academic year, and 63 APs were required to submit a 2014/15 AP Student record. A further 38 APs submitted a 2015/16 AP Student return. As a result, and for the first time, data is now available that allows the extended coverage including HE students at APs within the derivation of UKPI measures covering the areas of widening participation and non-continuation. Recognising that there is great interest in HE that is delivered outside of publicly funded providers, the UKPISG have taken the decision to release these measures, in the form of UK Performance Indicator Experimental Statistics.
5. The main reasons for the ‘experimental’ nature of this Experimental Statistics release are the derivation of the indicators which include certain methodological changes, and the application of an existing benchmarking methodology to a new group of providers. It is these issues on which we are particularly seeking feedback from users and stakeholders, to enable us to explore and understand the quality of the indicators that have been produced.
HESA invites feedback on ‘the methodological refinements described and implemented within this March 2017 release’ as well as feedback on ‘the content, structure and usefulness of the Experimental Statistics’ which are to be emailed to piteam@hesa.ac.uk.
* Wonkhe Newsletter, 24 March 2017