The Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 (Amendment) Order 2025
- Department: Office for Students
- Made under: Higher Education and Research Act 2017
The 2025 Order amended Norland College Limited's degree-awarding powers to be indefinite.
The Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 (Amendment) Order 2025, effective March 13, 2025, amends the 2019 Order to grant Norland College Limited (company number 00193170) indefinite authority to award degrees.
The Office for Students made the amendment after consulting relevant bodies on the quality of Norland College's higher education and complying with notification procedures.
The amendment removes a previous time restriction on Norland College's degree-awarding powers.
Arguments For
Removing Time Restrictions: Extending Norland College's degree-awarding powers indefinitely provides greater certainty and stability for the institution, allowing for long-term planning and resource allocation.
Institutional Autonomy: The amendment respects the autonomy of educational institutions to provide tailored educational offerings based on their unique circumstances and competencies.
Streamlined Regulatory Process: Removing the need for periodic renewal simplifies the regulatory process for both the institution and the Office for Students.
Evidence of Quality: The Office for Students' decision is based on advice regarding the quality of Norland College's higher education provision thus demonstrating its suitability for continued authorization.
Arguments Against
Lack of Periodic Review: Removing time restrictions could potentially limit opportunities for periodic review and evaluation of Norland College's performance, standards, and compliance.
Unforeseen Circumstances: Future changes in the higher education landscape or unforeseen events might render indefinite authorization problematic. Without a regular timeline for review, adapting to these conditions could be more difficult.
Regulatory Burden Shift: While simplifying the process for Norland College, the amendment might increase the monitoring burden on the Office for Students in the long term.
Potential for Abuse: Indefinite authorization, without regular review, holds a theoretical, albeit unlikely, risk of potential misuse of such enduring powers.
- Citation and commencement This Order may be cited as the Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 (Amendment) Order 2025 and comes into force on 13th March 2025.
This section provides the official name and effective date of the order.
The order is named 'Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 (Amendment) Order 2025', and it became effective on March 13, 2025.
- Variation of Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 (1) The Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019 is varied in accordance with paragraph (2). (2) For article 2, substitute— “2. Norland College Limited (registered company number 00193170) shall be competent to grant awards of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a) of section 76(2) of the said Act for an indefinite period.”
This section details the specific changes made to the 2019 Order.
Specifically, it replaces Article 2 of the original order.
The replacement text grants Norland College Limited the authority to grant awards as defined in section 76(2)(a) of the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 for an unrestricted period (indefinite).
EXPLANATORY NOTE (This note is not part of the Order) This Order varies Norland College Limited’s existing Degree Awarding Powers authorisation to remove the time restriction, so that its authorisation now remains for an indefinite period. A copy of Norland College Limited’s existing Degree Awarding Powers authorisation, The Power to Award Degrees etc. (Norland College Limited) Order of Council 2019, can be found at https://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/2019-03-14-Norland-College.pdf. An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as it has no impact on businesses and civil society organisations. The instrument has no impact on the public sector.
This explanatory note clarifies the purpose of the order: to extend Norland College's power to grant degrees in perpetuity.
It also notes that an impact assessment was not needed because it won't affect businesses, civil society groups or the public sector.
A link is provided to the original 2019 authorization.
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