Further and Higher Education Act 1992

Funds E+W

65 Administration of funds by councils. E+W

(1) Each council shall be responsible, subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, for administering funds made available to the council by the Secretary of State and others for the purposes of providing financial support for activities eligible for funding under this section.

(2) The activities eligible for funding under this section are—

(a) the provision of education and the undertaking of research by higher education institutions in the council’s area,

(b) the provision of any facilities, and the carrying on of any other activities, by higher education institutions in their area which the governing bodies of those institutions consider it necessary or desirable to provide or carry on for the purpose of or in connection with education or research,

(c) the provision—

(i) by institutions in their area maintained or assisted by local education authorities, or

(ii) by such institutions in their area as are within the further education sector,

of prescribed courses of higher education, and

(d) the provision by any person of services for the purposes of, or in connection with, the provision of education or the undertaking of research by institutions within the higher education sector.

(3) A council may—

(a) make grants, loans or other payments to the governing body of any higher education institution in respect of expenditure incurred or to be incurred by them for the purposes of any activities eligible for funding under this section by virtue of subsection (2)(a) or (b) above, and

(b) make grants, loans or other payments to any persons in respect of expenditure incurred or to be incurred by them for the purposes of the provision as mentioned in subsection (2)(c) above of prescribed courses of higher education or the provision of services as mentioned in subsection (2)(d) above,

subject in each case to such terms and conditions as the council think fit.

[F1 (3A) In the application of subsection (3) above to any grants, loans or other payments by a Council, the reference to expenditure incurred or to be incurred by the governing body of a higher education institution as mentioned in paragraph (a) of that subsection includes a reference to expenditure incurred or to be incurred by any connected institution to which the governing body propose, with the consent of the Council, to pay the whole or part of any such grants, loans or other payments.

(3B) In subsection (3A) “connected institution”, in relation to a higher education institution, means any college, school, hall or other institution which the Council in question are satisfied has a sufficient connection with that institution for the purposes of that subsection.]

(4) The terms and conditions on which a council may make any grants, loans or other payments under this section may in particular—

(a) enable the council to require the repayment, in whole or in part, of sums paid by the council if any of the terms and conditions subject to which the sums were paid is not complied with, and

(b) require the payment of interest in respect of any period during which a sum due to the council in accordance with any of the terms and conditions remains unpaid,

but shall not relate to the application by the body to whom the grants or other payments are made of any sums derived otherwise than from the council.

[F2 (4A) Without prejudice to the power to impose conditions given by subsection (3) above, the conditions subject to which a council makes grants, loans or other payments under this section to the governing body of a higher education institution shall require the governing body to publish disability statements at such intervals as may be specified.

(4B) For the purposes of subsection (4A) above—

• “disability statement” means a statement containing information of a specified description about the provision of facilities for education and research made by the institution in respect of persons who are disabled persons for the purposes of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995; and

• “specified” means specified in the conditions subject to which grants, loans or other payments are made by a council under this section.]

(5) In this section and section 66 of this Act “higher education institution” means a university, an institution conducted by a higher education corporation or a designated institution.

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 65(3A)(3B) inserted (retrospectively) by 1998 c. 30, ss. 27, 46(3) (with s. 42(8))

F2 S. 65(4A)(4B) inserted (31.7.1996) by 1995 c. 50, s. 30(6) (with ss. 59, 64, 65); S.I. 1996/1474, art. 2(2), Sch. Pt.II

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 65(3)(a) modified (1.4.1993) by S.I. 1993/563, art. 2, Sch. 1

Commencement Information

I1 S. 65 wholly in force at 1.4.1993 see s. 94(3) and S.I. 1992/831, art. 2, Sch. 3

66 Administration of funds: supplementary. E+W

(1) Before exercising their discretion under section 65(3)(a) of this Act with respect to the terms and conditions to be imposed in relation to any grants, loans or other payments, a council shall consult such of the following bodies as appear to the council to be appropriate to consult in the circumstances—

(a) such bodies representing the interests of higher education institutions as appear to the council to be concerned, and

(b) the governing body of any particular higher education institution which appears to the council to be concerned.

(2) In exercising their functions in relation to the provision of financial support for activities eligible for funding under section 65 of this Act a council shall have regard to the desirability of not discouraging any institution for whose activities financial support is provided under that section from maintaining or developing its funding from other sources.

(3) In exercising those functions a council shall have regard (so far as they think it appropriate to do so in the light of any other relevant considerations) to the desirability of maintaining—

(a) what appears to them to be an appropriate balance in the support given by them as between institutions which are of a denominational character and other institutions, and

(b) any distinctive characteristics of any institution within the higher education sector for whose activities financial support is provided under that section.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (3) above an institution is an institution of a denominational character if it appears to the council that either—

(a) at least one quarter of the members of the governing body of the institution are persons appointed to represent the interests of a religion or religious denomination,

(b) any of the property held for the purposes of the institution is held upon trusts which provide that, in the event of the discontinuance of the institution, the property concerned shall be held for, or sold and the proceeds of sale applied for, the benefit of a religion or religious denomination, or

(c) any of the property held for the purposes of the institution is held on trust for or in connection with—

(i) the provision of education, or

(ii) the conduct of an educational institution,

in accordance with the tenets of a religion or religious denomination.

Commencement Information

I2 S. 66 wholly in force at 1.4.1993 see s. 94(3) and S.I. 1992/831, art. 2, Sch. 3

67 Payments in respect of persons employed in provision of higher or further education. E+W

(1) In section 133 of the M1 Education Reform Act 1988 (payments by PCFC in respect of persons employed in the provision of higher or further education) for subsection (1) there is substituted—

“(1) A higher education funding council shall have power to make payments, subject to such terms and conditions as the council think fit, to—

(a) any local education authority in their area;

(b) the London Residuary Body;

(c) the London Pensions Fund Authority; and

(d) the governing body of any institution designated under section 129 of this Act, as originally enacted;

in respect of relevant expenditure incurred or to be incurred by that authority or body of any class or description prescribed for the purposes of this section.”

(2) In subsection (2)(a) of that section (meaning of relevant expenditure) after “education authority” there is inserted “ the London Residuary Body or the London Pensions Fund Authority ”.

(3) At the end of subsection (3) of that section (meaning of references to higher and further education) there is added “ and in any other case the reference to further education shall be read as a reference to further education within the meaning of section 41 of the 1944 Act as that section had effect on that date ”.

(4) In subsection (4) of that section (duty to give information) after paragraph (a) there is inserted—

“(aa) the London Residuary Body;

(ab) the London Pensions Fund Authority”.

(5) That section as originally enacted shall have effect, or be treated as having had effect, as if—

(a) in subsection (1), in relation to anything done before regulations for the purposes of that subsection were in force, the words “of any class or description prescribed for the purposes of this section” were omitted, and

(b) in subsections (1) and (2) the references to a local education authority included the London Residuary Body and the London Pensions Fund Authority.

Commencement Information

I3 S. 67 wholly in force: s. 67(2)-(5) in force at 6.5.1992; s. 67(1) in force at 1.4.1993 see s. 94(3) and S.I. 1992/831, art. 2, Schs. 1, 3

Marginal Citations

M1 1988 c. 40.

68 Grants to councils. E+W

(1) The Secretary of State may make grants to each of the councils of such amounts and subject to such terms and conditions as he may determine.

(2) The terms and conditions subject to which grants are made by the Secretary of State to either of the councils—

(a) may in particular impose requirements to be complied with in respect of every institution, or every institution falling within a class or description specified in the terms and conditions, being requirements to be complied with in the case of any institution to which the requirements apply before financial support of any amount or description so specified is provided by the council in respect of activities carried on by the institution, but

(b) shall not otherwise relate to the provision of financial support by the council in respect of activities carried on by any particular institution or institutions.

(3) Such terms and conditions may not be framed by reference to particular courses of study or programmes of research (including the contents of such courses or programmes and the manner in which they are taught, supervised or assessed) or to the criteria for the selection and appointment of academic staff and for the admission of students.

(4) Such terms and conditions may in particular—

(a) enable the Secretary of State to require the repayment, in whole or in part, of sums paid by him if any of the terms and conditions subject to which the sums were paid is not complied with, and

(b) require the payment of interest in respect of any period during which a sum due to the Secretary of State in accordance with any of the terms and conditions remains unpaid.

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C2 S. 68(1) extended (16.7.1998) by 1998 c. 30, ss. 26(3), 46(3) (with s. 42(8))

Commencement Information

I4 S. 68 wholly in force at 6.5.1992 see s. 94(3) and S.I. 1992/831, art. 2, Sch. 1