09 October 2017 
Matt Sisson, Projects and Membership Manager
HEFCE has published its requirements for this year’s efficiency reporting for English HEIs, which confirms significant changes from last year.
Institutions will now no longer be required to submit full VfM reports (although HEFCE hopes that these will still be produced and used internally). Instead, HEIs will submit an efficiency return, listing the efficiencies delivered in the 16/17 academic year only that have released cash or resources, or resulted in productivity gains or capital receipts. A key feature is that institutions that submit procurement savings to the EMM survey do not need to duplicate these again via the efficiency return. The deadline for these submissions is Wednesday 31st January (so after the completion of the EMM).
The circular can be found on the HEFCE website, and this includes examples and notes on completion. The HEFCE site also has related guidance on VfM and efficiency. July’s long-form report on last year’s VfM submissions (which includes recommendations) may also prove useful background reading.
