Our approach to equality of opportunity

We are asking the sector to increase the evaluation work they do, so it is important that we lead by example. We are evaluating the effectiveness of our reforms in reducing the risks to equality of opportunity.

Theory of change

We have developed a theory of change for the reforms. This is to set out a clear, overarching view of how we intend to achieve the long-term impact of improved equality of opportunity through regulatory activity and working with providers, and to form a foundation for robust strategy and evaluation.  

This theory of change diagram summarises how the OfS anticipates its reformed approach to regulating equality of opportunity will lead to improved equality of opportunity for all students. It has been developed by the OfS as part of an internal evaluation of the reforms.

The diagram describes the various regulatory activities involved in the reforms and the intended short, medium and long-term outcomes of the activities.

It presents these outcomes in a series of ‘causal pathways’, which are linked steps that show how the OfS anticipates each activity will contribute to the intended impact of improved equality of opportunity.

The access and participation space within English higher education is complex, where various interconnected elements may influence the outcomes of policy changes, regulatory activity, and providers’ activity.

This theory of change acknowledges the potential influence of contextual factors such as other OfS regulatory activity and the wider economic context.

However, its primary focus is on setting out the OfS’s reformed approach to regulating equality of opportunity in relation to providers’ access and participation plans.

Process and emerging impact evaluation of the 2023 reforms 

For the first phase of this evaluation, in 2023, we commissioned Shift Learning to hold telephone interviews with wave 1 providers and stakeholders to reflect on the early implementation of our reforms.

We considered feedback and learning from other data sources internal to the OfS, including:

• submissions and feedback from students involved in access and participation plans 
• feedback directly from webinars and telephone surgeries
• initial analysis of the plans.

For the second phase of the evaluation, we commissioned Shift Learning to hold interviews with wave 2 providers and stakeholders.

We also commissioned Shift Learning to conduct interviews with collaborative partners of wave 1 providers. In addition, we analysed student submissions, assessor perspectives, and data from access and participation plans. 

We have synthesised all the evaluation information gathered between 2023 to 2025 into a short summary report.

We plan to continue to evaluate the reforms over the next few years. This will enable us to explore the extent to which the reforms have contributed to improved equality of opportunity in English higher education.

We will published future updates and findings on this page.