The Office for Students (OfS) has published a case report that explains its regulatory decisions following an investigation into the quality of BSc computing courses delivered by Bradford College and leading to qualifications awarded by the University of Greater Manchester.
The OfS decided to open the investigation in December 2022 as a result of its general monitoring activity. An expert assessment team identified three areas of concern, which were set out in a quality assessment report published in May 2024. At the time of publication, Bradford College had already taken a decision to cease recruitment to its computing degrees from 2023.
Based on the evidence gathered by the assessment team, the OfS has found both the delivery partner, Bradford College, and the awarding partner, the University of Greater Manchester, have breached the following general ongoing conditions of registration:
- Condition B1, which requires universities and colleges to ensure that students ‘receive a high quality academic experience’. This includes ensuring that courses provide an appropriate level of educational challenge, are coherent and require students to develop relevant skills.
- Condition B4, which ensures degrees and other qualifications accurately reflect students’ knowledge and skills and hold their value over time. This includes a requirement for universities and colleges to ensure that students are assessed effectively and that awards are credible at the point of being granted and when compared to those granted previously.
During and since the assessment process, the OfS engaged with Bradford College, which explained the changes it had made in relation to the concerns set out in the assessment report. The OfS has found that these changes will effectively remedy the breaches of conditions B1 and B4 and has decided not to take any further regulatory action at this time.
Commenting, Jean Arnold, Deputy Director of Quality at the OfS, said:
‘We welcome the positive steps taken by Bradford College to accept and address the concerns we raised in relation to the quality of its computing courses.
‘When we published the quality report in 2024, Bradford College had already taken a decision to cease recruitment to its computing degrees from 2023. Our focus was therefore on ensuring that students already studying on the relevant computing courses receive a high quality education and credible awards that reflect their knowledge and skills.
‘We’re satisfied that Bradford College has taken appropriate action to give students confidence that they’re getting the academic experience they were promised and the credible qualifications they deserve.’