Funding Mass Tertiary Education: Assessing Alternative Policies and their Trade-Offs in England

Abstract

England has experienced a variety of funding systems in tertiary education during the past three decades and there are currently several alternative policy proposals on the table. Each policy involves different trade offs. The first part of the article examines the current funding arrangements in the higher and further education sectors, and the debates on the strengths and weaknesses of these. The second part looks at alternative funding proposals and how they measure up in terms of affordability and equity in access and cost sharing.