FOI_25-211 Correspondence between Office for Students

Date of response: 11 August 2025

We have now considered your request of 13 July 2025 for the following information:

In June, the Office for Students, which regulates English universities, issued guidance explaining how universities should interpret their responsibilities under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 ('HEFOSA'). The guidance, in example 25, recommended the amendment or termination of China Scholarship Council scholarship programmes.

Request

Please provide:

- All correspondence from the 1st of June 2025 to the day you deal with this FOI request, between university staff and relating to the Office for Students' HEFOSA guidance on academic freedom and the China Scholarship Council programmes.

- All documents or reports, and all minutes of meetings at which issues relating to HEFOSA and the China Scholarship Council programmes were discussed.

Our response:

On this occasion it is not possible to provide any of the requested information. In line with your rights under section 1(1)(a) of the Act to be informed whether information is held, we confirm that the University does not hold any recorded information for any or all correspondence from the 01 June 2025 to 13 July 2025 (the date of request received) between staff and relating to the Office for Students HEFOSA guidance on academic freedom and the China Scholarship Council programmes. We also confirm we do not hold any information for documents, reports or minutes of meetings at which issued relating to HEFOSA and the China Scholarship Council programmes were discussed. The University hold none of the requested information.