48th meeting of the OfS board, 11 February 2026

In the video below, OfS chair Professor Edward Peck summarises discussions that took place at the February board meeting.

Agenda and associated papers

1 Chair’s welcome

2 Minutes of the previous meeting

3 Chair’s report

4 Chief executive’s report

5 The OfS’s operating environment

This includes:

• Annex A Summary of student pulse survey 
• Annex B Provider visits 

The summary of the student pulse survey is considered to be exempt from publication.

We publish a report showing data from our student pulse survey three times during the academic year. It shows trends for each of the key measures of student experiences at their provider in key areas of interest to the OfS. The autumn 2025 survey was published in February 2026.

6 Approach to consumer protection  

Our developing proposals for a new ongoing condition of registration that would require providers to treat students fairly.

Considered to be exempt from publication. We expect to launch our consultation in April. 

7 Integrated approach to quality

A paper seeking early steers from the board on developing the approach in response to initial analysis of feedback from the consultation. We expect to publish the outcomes of the consultation in June 2026.

Considered to be exempt from publication.

8. Freedom of speech

A paper seeking a steer on the OfS’s direction of travel in this area.

Considered to be exempt from publication.

9 Report from the Risk and Audit Committee

10 Risk report

The latest report on the current strategic and principal (high) corporate risks.

Considered to be exempt from publication. A summary of risks is published in the annual report.

11 Oversight of the designated data body

An update on OfS oversight of Jisc as the designated data body.

Considered to be exempt from publication.

12 Report from the Provider Panel

An oral report of the February 2026 meeting. We expect to publish the written report with the papers for the next board meeting. 

13 Report from the People Committee

An oral report of the February 2026 meeting. 

14 Report from the Quality Assessment Committee

15 OfS finances

Financial performance for the nine months ended 31 December 2025 and the forecast position as of 31 March 2026.

Considered to be exempt from publication. Financial information is published in the annual report.

16 Financial sustainability 

A presentation summarising early trends from providers’ 2024 and 2025 annual financial returns and an update on student recruitment.

Considered to be exempt from publication. We expect to publish our 2026 report on the financial sustainability of higher education providers in May. Our most recent report was published in November 2025.

17 Market exit

An update on overall market exit risks across the sector, and updates on individual cases.

Considered to be exempt from publication.

18 Annual plan for board business

A plan of the business of the board over the next 12 months.

Considered to be exempt from publication.