Universities are employers – they are businesses

By Claire Shaw. Ahead of party conference season, John Cridland shares his perspective on the role universities play in UK economic growth.
You've spoken widely about schools and business, John. How important a role do you see higher education playing in getting the UK back on track?
I think the market is changing very rapidly and in part this is a consequence of tuition fees, which have been a real challenge for the higher education sector. But every cloud has a silver lining, and the silver lining is that it's bringing the customer, the young person, much closer to specifying what it is they really want to get out of higher education. More...