How to request information from us
OfS publication scheme
The OfS publication scheme sets out the different types of information we make available and how to obtain them.
Freedom of Information requests
Most information is accessible through either our website or our publication scheme below. However, if you are unable to find the information that you are looking for, please contact us, or submit a request for information.
Publication scheme
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, public authorities are required to maintain a publication scheme approved by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and to make information covered by that scheme accessible to the public.
Our publication scheme outlines the categories of information we routinely publish and how this information can be obtained. It is based on the ICO’s model publication scheme and the associated definition document for non departmental public bodies.
The Office for Students (OfS) is committed to proactive transparency and aims to make information available as part of our normal business activities, wherever it is lawful and appropriate to do so. Where disclosure would cause significant harm, we will apply the relevant exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We also have a duty to comply with data protection legislation and to safeguard the privacy of individuals.
Ahead of submitting a freedom of information request, it is recommended that you review the information we already publish, as it may meet your needs without the need to submit a formal request.
We’re the regulator for higher education in England. We protect the interests of students by supporting a diverse and independent higher education sector. Our website has information on:
- About the OfS
- Who we are
- What we do
- Introduction to the Office for Students (a guide for providers of higher education)
Our relationship to government
The OfS was established in January 2018 under the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 to regulate English higher education providers on behalf of all students, and ensure that every student, whatever their background, has a fulfilling experience of higher education that enriches their lives and careers.
We are accountable to the Department for Education for the way we work and the funds we distribute. We engage with other government departments, such as the Department of Health and Social Care and HM Treasury, as necessary. See our how we are run page.
Guidance letters from the government to the OfS
The government gives us strategic advice, sets out our annual priorities, and tells us how much money to distribute to higher education providers. See our guidance from government page.
Working in partnership
Working in partnership is central to the delivery of our objectives. Key partners include students, government, higher education providers, employers and key national agencies. Our framework document sets out how we engage with government officials. See our relationship with government page.
Financial transparency and procurement information
We publish information about future procurement opportunities on our procurement pipeline, current contracts on our contract register, and we publish invitations to tender for above threshold open and competitive flexible tender opportunities through the Find a Tender service. See our procurement page.
We publish spending over £25,000, all procurement card transactions over £500 (published monthly) and prompt payment performance data (published quarterly). See our transparency data page.
Annual report and accounts
We publish our annual report and accounts after the end of each financial year. See our annual report and accounts.
Senior staff salaries and board members’ allowances and expenses
We publish the salaries and expense claims of OfS staff at director level and above, and the expense claims of board members, when available. See our transparency data page.
Gender pay gap
Public sector bodies are required to publish data about their gender pay gap each year. We publish our gender pay gap data on our equality and diversity page.
OfS strategy
Our strategy for 2025 to 2030 sets out our strategic objectives and the approach we will take to achieve them. See our strategy page.
Our business plan outlines the work we will do each year.
Impact and performance
We publish information on our impact and performance. See our key performance measures.
OfS standards
We publish information on how we strive to meet high standards when we conduct our business, make policy decisions, and deal with requests or enquiries. See our how we are run page.
Our regulatory framework
Our regulatory framework states how the OfS performs its various functions, and provides guidance for registered higher education providers on the ongoing conditions of registration. See our regulatory framework page.
Conditions of registration
To register and stay registered with the OfS, a provider must show that it offers high quality higher education. Our conditions of registration are designed to make sure providers maintain these high standards. See our registering with the OfS page.
Evaluations
Evaluation enables us to make evidence informed decisions, improve our activities, and stop investing in approaches that don’t work, helping us deliver the impact we intend while using public resources responsibly. The Evaluation team works across the OfS to deliver evaluation projects in collaboration with policy teams. We publish our evaluation reports on an ad hoc basis. See our publications index.
Quality assessment reports
We assess whether higher education providers meet our requirements relating to quality and standards. This happens:
- when a provider first registers with the OfS – see reports for registration applications
- when a provider applies for degree awarding powers – see assessments for degree awarding powers
- once a provider is registered – see quality compliance assessments for registered providers.
Environmental information
The OfS aims to act in an environmentally and socially responsible manner to achieve our goals. We publish environmental information in our sustainability report. See our annual report and accounts.
Our leadership
The OfS leadership team is responsible for delivering our objectives and business plan. See our leadership page.
Our board
Our board is responsible for setting our strategy and making sure we deliver it. The board meets regularly throughout the year. See our board page.
Board papers
We publish papers presented to the OfS board. See our OfS board papers. Please note that some papers are exempt or partially exempt from publication under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Where this is the case, it is noted within each board meeting.
Major policy proposals, decisions and background information
We publish relevant decisions and policies. See our publications index.
Public consultations
All our consultations, current and past, are listed on our consultations page.
Assessing equality impact
Subject to relevance and proportionality, equality impact is assessed on all policies and programmes. The outcomes of those assessments will be published in our publications section alongside the associated publication.
By assessing equality impact, we proactively consider the needs of students, the wider community or our own employees. We identify potential steps to advance equality and foster good relations, and ensure that we do not discriminate unlawfully.
Equality and diversity
In all areas, our work on equality and diversity follows our strategy.
Personal data and information security
We're committed to protecting personal information and being clear about what personal information we hold about and how we use it. We provide details on how we process personal data and information security matters. See our privacy page.
Information rights requests
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI Act) and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) give anyone the right to request access to information held by public authorities, including the OfS. Information held by the OfS that is not published under this scheme can be requested in writing, subject to the provision of this legislation. For further information on how to request information from us, see our how to make a FOI or EIR request page.
The Re-use of Public Sector Information (RPSI) Regulations 2015 gives anyone the right to request the re-use of information which is owned by the OfS. For further information on how to make a re-use request under these regulations, see the information relating to RPSI on our re-use request page.
Data protection legislation gives you the right to know what information the OfS holds about you and how it is used. This type of request is otherwise known as a ‘Subject Access Request (SAR)’. See our how to make a request to access your personal information page, which includes information on how to exercise other rights under data protection legislation.
If you are unhappy with our response to your request for information, you have the right, in most circumstances, to appeal. See our how to appeal page.
Charging regimes and policies
We may charge for responding to some information requests. See our how to request information pages for details.
Public interest disclosures (whistleblowing)
We provide information about how to raise a concern, complaint or whistleblow about a higher education provider. See our notifications page.
Making a complaint about the OfS
We’re committed to hearing about things we may have got wrong and putting them right where we can. See our complaints page.
Please note that this procedure cannot be used by students wishing to bring a complaint against their higher education provider. Such complaints should be directed to the provider initially and, if the outcome is not satisfactory, the Office of the Independent Adjudicator.
Making a notification
If you believe your higher education provider may not be meeting the OfS’s requirements, you can send us a notification. See our notifications page.
Recruitment
We provide information about working at the OfS, guidance for applicants and current vacancies. See our careers page. Please contact the recruitment team on [email protected] for more information.
Public registers and registers held as public records
- Register of higher education providers in England
- Access and participation plans and Access agreements
Disclosure log
The OfS publishes a Freedom of Information disclosure log on a quarterly basis.
Gifts and hospitality
We publish our register of gifts and hospitality provided to board members and senior staff, when available. See our transparency data page.
Registers of interests
We publish information regarding the interests of board members, committee members and directors.
Uni Connect
We publish information about the Uni Connect programme including how it works, the goals of the programme, case studies and evaluations. See our Uni Connect pages.
Discover Uni
Discover Uni is the official, authoritative source of information and guidance on higher education in the UK. Discover Uni provides information, advice and guidance about the different options for studying. See our Discover Uni page.
CCTV
The OfS has closed circuit television (CCTV) in place at our Bristol site for the prevention and detection of crime.
Contact details
Our contact details and links to frequently requested guidance are available on our contact us pages.
Advice and guidance
The OfS offers publishes information on:
- Guidance and help for students
- Guidance and help for providers
- Quality and standards
- Freedom of speech
- Student protection and choice
- Promoting equal opportunities
We provide tailored information for further education colleges providing higher education courses. See our For colleges page.
Data analysis
The OfS collects, publishes and analyses statistics on students and the higher education sector.
This includes provider-level information such as National Student Survey (NSS) results, data on providers participating in partnership arrangements, student number data, and access and participation data.
We also publish sector-level statistics, including data on student characteristics, Annual Financial Return sector data, young participation by area, and findings from the sexual misconduct survey.
This data and a schedule of all our official statistics are published on our data and analysis pages.
Newsletter and email lists
The OfS uses several email lists to send messages to higher education institutions and anyone else with an interest in higher education. We also produce a monthly digital newsletter. You can subscribe to email alerts and newsletters on our sign-up page.
News and events
At the end of each month, we publish a roundup of everything we have published on our website, including news, reports, blogs and other key updates. See the monthly update page.
Archived information previously on our website is available from The National Archives.
Disclosure log
The OfS’s disclosure log provides information on how we respond to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, and is published on a quarterly basis.
How long do we retain information for?
Please contact us if you have any questions about how long we retain information for.
Last updated 10 April 2026 + show all updates
10 April 2026 - Publication scheme information refreshed.
02 February 2026 - We have published FOI disclosure logs for the last two quarters of 2025.
17 November 2025 - Removed link to our retention schedule document, which had become out of date.
30 July 2025 - Published April-June 2025 disclosure log.
13 January 2025 - Added disclosure logs for quarters 3 and 4, 2024.
29 July 2024 - Published disclosure logs for January-March and April-June 2024.
10 January 2024 - Published disclosure logs for July-September 2023 and October-December 2023.
17 July 2023 - Published disclosure log for April-June 2023.
13 April 2023 - Published disclosure log for January-March 2023
10 January 2023 - Published disclosure log for October-December 2022
15 July 2022 - Published disclosure log for April-June 2022
12 April 2022 - Published disclosure log for January-March 2022
25 January 2022 - Published disclosure log for October-December 2021
20 October 2021 - Published disclosure log for July-September 2021
Describe your experience of using this website