Mergers, acquisitions and changes to legal status

We welcome providers considering new, innovative approaches to securing a resilient future, and can support them when considering potential collaboration or merger activity.

This guide explains how we can support a higher education provider and what it should do if it is planning a merger, acquisition, change of ownership, or change of legal form. It sets out when to contact the Office for Students (OfS), what we may ask for, and other actions you may need to consider.

Providers may change their structure for a range of reasons. These changes can be complex and may affect different areas of regulation.

We do not approve mergers, but can support on relevant areas to help providers plan their next steps. We ask providers to tell us as soon as possible, which helps us understand the proposal, explain what information we need and advise providers on how to plan.