QAA publishes new Quality Code Advice and Guidance suite

QAA has today published the first three collections of Advice and Guidance designed to accompany and support the latest edition of the UK Quality Code for Higher Education.

These three collections elaborate upon the subjects of principles 1, 2, and 8 of the 2024 Quality Code, the first full new iteration of the Code to be published since 2018.

These three principles focus on 'Taking a strategic approach to managing quality and standards', 'Engaging students as partners', and 'Operating partnerships with other organisations'.

Like the Quality Code itself, these documents were written in collaboration with experts from the tertiary education sector across the four nations of the UK.

The Advice and Guidance on managing quality and standards focuses on provider responsibilities, embedding strategies, communications, external expertise and processes for monitoring and evaluation.

The Advice and Guidance on engaging students looks at strategy and culture, the student voice, effective engagement, engagement opportunities and processes, recognition of contributions, and governance.

The Advice and Guidance on operating partnerships considers approaches to the planning and management of – and the mitigation of the risks of – collaborative provision both domestically and transnationally, charting partners' roles and responsibilities, contractual agreements, communication mechanisms, strategic due diligence, student support and review processes, as well as a range of issues specific to transnational partnerships.

QAA's Chief Executive Vicki Stott said: "We're delighted to publish these new sets of Advice and Guidance, following last year's new edition of the UK Quality Code. The topics covered here are important, valuable and timely. Issues around the risks and benefits of partnership provision – both at home and transnationally – have raised legitimate public interest. The guidance now brought together here adds to the body of work we've recently produced on this topic, to provide a well-timed resource for higher education providers.

"The Quality Code and its underpinning advice and guidance supports providers' work in the assurance and enhancement of the quality of the provision for which they are responsible. In its stewardship of this work, QAA enables the sectors it serves to demonstrate to the public and to policymakers the seriousness with which the sector takes those responsibilities.

"Meanwhile, at a time when our sector is facing unprecedented pressures, approaches to the strategic embedding, operation, communication and evaluation of quality management are more vital than ever. The collection of advice on engaging students in productive, proactive and truly collaborative partnerships promotes practices which are of course central and vital to all our work in quality enhancement and assurance both here at QAA and throughout our sector.

"The real strength in this piece of work is that it enables providers to think about how to apply the Code to their own context, allowing for flexibility, creativity and institutional autonomy in the design and application of quality approaches to provision, while suggesting a variety of ways in which good practice might flourish.

"We're very grateful to our colleagues from the four nations of the UK who have contributed their expert perspectives to the creation of these key points of reference, advice and support for our sector – to help us all in our work to continue to promote the quality, integrity and value of higher education in the UK and across the world."

These collections of Advice and Guidance are being launched at online events taking place on 16 and 17 July.