5 Our analysis also highlights a number of other significant risk areas: • Estates: only two thirds of institutions have a strategic risk relating to their estate despite student recruitment challenges and risks of under (or over) utilisation of space and accommodation, maintenance, and carbon management challenges. There is a need for more comprehensive and current data about the condition and utilisation of estates. • University employees: people related risks now appear on most strategic risk registers. Risks increasingly address the multiple consequences of significant headcount reductions, with both inherent and residual average risk scores increasing, reflecting concerns with morale, wellbeing, and operational resilience. • Research: Research risks are increasingly appearing on strategic risk registers and typically relate to risks around securing funding, with a growing focus on the next Research Excellence Framework (REF). Audit committee attention on research tends to be limited to transparent approach to costing (TRAC) returns. There is likely to be a greater need for consideration of risks relating to the REF and securing an effective trusted research framework. • Students: average risk scores relating to the student experience, outcomes and wellbeing are broadly similar to 2024/25, and risks typically reflect potential impacts on conditions of registration, national student survey results and league tables. There is remarkably little reference to underlying changes in student behaviours, for example the switch to living at home and commuting and the fact that a majority of undergraduate students now combine work and study. We also note a wide variation in practice in sharing lessons learned from serious safeguarding cases and student deaths with audit committees and governing bodies.
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