Subcontracting or validating higher education

This page summarises requirements for franchise providers with 300 or more higher education students to register with the Office for Students.

A franchise provider – or ‘delivery partner’ – delivers higher education courses on behalf of a lead provider (often a university).

The lead provider controls the course content, assessment, and oversees quality and standards. Students register with the lead provider but the franchise provider teaches them.

Registering with the OfS

From the 2028-29 academic year, higher education providers must be registered with the OfS if they:

• deliver courses through franchise arrangements, and
• have 300 or more franchised students, and
• would like new students to be eligible to access student finance.

They must do this unless an exemption applies.

Read the government’s guidance on franchise arrangements

To register, franchise providers will need to meet our conditions of registration. These set out requirements that cover quality and standards, student protection, financial sustainability and governance.

Providers will need to demonstrate robust arrangements for managing partnership risks and protecting students.

Further education colleges are exempt from the requirement. Colleges that deliver a designated course on behalf of a provider that is registered with the OfS can continue to do so and do not need to be registered with the OfS. This is the case regardless of any number of franchised students that the college has. Colleges will still need to register with the OfS if they want to directly deliver Level 4 to 6 designated courses or modules. This is because lifelong learning entitlement (LLE)-funded modules cannot be delivered through franchised arrangements.

Find out more about registering with the OfS as a further education college

Exemptions

The requirement applies only to providers in England. It does not apply to providers in the devolved nations.

The new requirement will also not apply to certain public-sector or statutory bodies, including:

• state-funded schools
• further education corporations and sixth form colleges
• designated institutions
• NHS providers
• police and crime commissioners
• local authorities
• government departments
• the armed forces
• mayoral combined authorities.

Timetable

Key dates:

• 1 July 2026 – deadline for applications submitted
• September 2027 – the Department for Education will confirm which providers’ courses are designated for student finance for new students in the academic year 2028-29

Providers that have applied on time but not received a decision by September 2027 will continue to be funded until the OfS decides.

Appeals

For September 2027 and 2028 only, providers can appeal if they can show their actual student numbers were below 300 in the year before the designation decision.

But they must be able to show evidence that student numbers were below the threshold.

 ‘Correction year’

If an unregistered provider exceeds 300 franchised students after implementation:

• it will lose eligibility for student finance for new students for one year, even if they register later
• repeated breaches lead to multiple consecutive years of ineligibility.

List of franchised providers

The Department for Education will publish each year a list of franchised providers with courses that are designated for student finance.

This aims to:

• help students make informed choices
• protect students from low quality or high risk provision
• reduce fraud or abuse.