WIREDGOV

HEFCE welcomes a report on student retention published yesterday by the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Commons.

Professor David Eastwood, Chief Executive of HEFCE, said:

'The UK is justly proud of its record in achieving higher estimated graduation rates than most other OECD countries. This is a timely report and we will be studying its recommendations carefully. We are pleased it acknowledges that the comparatively high level of retention has been achieved and maintained during a period when higher education has been opened up to both increased numbers and a greater diversity of students.

'As the report points out there is a disparity of performance across the sector and there is no cause for complacency. We will be holding a number of workshops with the National Audit Office and higher education representatives in March and April on how we can improve performance and retention, which will inform our response to this report.'

The report, titled 'Staying the course: the retention of students on higher education courses' is published on the Public Accounts Committee web-site.