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Accountability
One of the unusual aspects of higher education governance is that accountability is not always clear.For example, private sector boards are accountable to shareholders and NHS trust boards to the government. In part, this is because of the unique position of higher education institutions in receiving public funding but not formally being part of the public sector.
The CUC Guide (p17) opens with the words that "HEIs are legally independent corporate institutions....", hence the governing body has "ultimate responsibility for all the affairs of the institution". In this capacity it can sue and be sued, and is only accountable to the law of the land.
However, in practice accountability is more complex and has at least four other elements:
- Almost all institutions are dependent on public funds allocated primarily - although not exclusively - by the four UK funding bodies. Institutions and their governing bodies are therefore accountable to those funding bodies for the use of the funds allocated, and in particular for meeting the terms of a financial memorandum.
- Almost all institutions have charitable status, and are accountable to their charity regulator for complying with legal and regulatory requirements. The arrangements for regulation vary between England and the devolved administrations.
- Much of the core work of institutions in the area of teaching and research is regulated, and they need to comply with the quality assurance mechanisms of academic regulatory bodies.
- The highly collegiate nature of higher education has created a culture (particularly in pre-1992 universities) of academic autonomy, with staff expecting substantial participation in decision making and institutional life. In such universities, some governors may feel that there is a sense of implicit accountability to the staff and students of the institution itself. This form of accountability is similar to that found in cooperative or partnership organisations, where an organisation may exist explicitly to meet the needs of its members and employees.
When these four factors are put together, it is little wonder that accountability may not be explicit in all circumstances. For governance this raises a number of interesting challenges.
A joint statement from the HEFCE and the Board of Governors of London Metropolitan University illustrates some of the accountability issues for governors following a major institutional crisis.
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