The cross-party Public Accounts Committee , which draws on the work of the National Audit Office to examine value for money on Government projects, programmes and services, warns of the risks presented by a lack of oversight of student finance schemes. According to the new report the growing use of so-called “franchised providers” presents risks to students.
Evidence submitted to the committee’s inquiry by the OfS told how they were “shocked” by the high amounts of tuition fees retained by franchisees, with incentives to make a profit causing spend on students to be reduced. Among the report’s conclusions are that “the current regulatory system does not ensure sufficient oversight over franchised providers,” and that “roles and responsibilities for fraud prevention, detection and intervention are undefined.