RISELADDER
Value for Money
Value for Money
Riseladders School of Academics focus on the following key areas to ensure that students get value for money:
Teaching quality and outcomes
Consumer protection
Fees, funding and efficiency
Value for Money (VfM)
Policy Statement
Value for Money (VfM) refers to evaluating whether the institution has achieved optimal outcomes from the goods and services it procures and delivers, relative to available resources. This policy considers VfM through the dual lens of student benefit and public accountability.
Riseladders School of Business and Technology is dedicated to delivering Value for Money across its operations for both learners and the public. VfM will be assessed against the two core stakeholder-focused objectives outlined in the Office for Students (OfS) Value for Money Strategy 2019–21 to ensure:
- Students achieve Value for Money when their investment of time, effort, and finances yields meaningful academic, personal, and professional outcomes—both throughout their studies and in their post-graduation opportunities.
- Taxpayers realise Value for Money when higher education institutions allocate public funding and tuition fees responsibly to support inclusive student success and produce graduates who contribute meaningfully to both the economy and wider society.
- Value for Money evaluates not just expenditure but also the balance of quality, cost-efficiency, relevance, timeliness, and overall suitability. Student feedback—covering satisfaction with instruction, support services, and academic resources, as well as graduate employment outcomes provides essential insight to both the School and its learners in assessing the effectiveness and return on their educational investment.
- The principal indicators of Value for Money from the student perspective include:
- Delivering accurate, easily accessible, and current programme information alongside fair and transparent admissions processes.
- Adopting inclusive recruitment strategies that address the needs of minority ethnic communities and historically underrepresented student populations.
- Delivering high-calibre teaching and learning, with ongoing enhancement driven by student feedback and collaborative engagement.
- Offering tailored support to facilitate students’ transition into employment.
To ensure optimal Value for Money, Riseladders prioritises cost-efficiency, operational effectiveness, and academic quality across teaching, learning, assessment, and student support services.
Economy: Minimizing resource costs.
Efficiency: Effective use of resources.
Effectiveness
Meeting objectives, particularly in terms of student achievement and progression.
The School assesses its Value for Money by tracking student outcomes, analysing satisfaction surveys and feedback, and reviewing graduate destinations reporting findings annually on its website to ensure transparency and keep stakeholders fully informed.
Riseladders is dedicated to embedding Value for Money principles into its strategic planning and operations, applying sector best practices, benchmarking against peer institutions, and fostering continuous improvement. Audited financial statements are published online to ensure transparency in resource allocation and demonstrate Value for Money.
The School maintains defined protocols for tuition management, refunds, and enrolment terms, while facilitating student mobility and offering guidance on academic credit recognition and transfers.
Objectives
Riseladders strives to deliver strong Value for Money to both its students and funding bodies by:
- Embedding Value for Money principles across institutional planning and operational frameworks.
- Applying established sector best practices.
- Comparing institutional performance with peer institutions to ensure alignment and competitiveness.
- Advancing a culture of ongoing enhancement and excellence.
- Ensuring staff understand and uphold their responsibility to pursue Value for Money
- Executing key institutional priorities outlined in the strategic plan.
Assessing Value for Money within the framework of annual review and reporting processes.
Framework of Control
Riseladders has established control measures designed to ensure Value for Money, including the following key areas:
- Assessing student development, completion outcomes, satisfaction levels, and graduate destinations.
- Strategic planning with clearly defined Value for Money objectives and performance benchmarks.
- Allocating financial resources effectively and undertaking value-added performance assessments.
- Evaluating institutional outcomes against sector-aligned benchmark data.
- Executing targeted Value for Money audits and institutional enhancement initiatives.
Responsibility
The obligation to deliver Value for Money rests with the Board of Governance, leadership, and all staff—not solely those overseeing budgets or financial resources.
- The Board holds responsibility for ensuring the economical, efficient, and effective use of Riseladders’ resources, safeguarding the full value and intended impact of public funding from compromise or misapplication.
- The Senior Leadership Team is accountable for establishing systems that prioritise Value for Money, ensuring it forms the foundation of all teaching, learning, and assessment delivery across the institution.
- Managers are expected to remain informed of best practices within their functional areas and to ensure these standards are consistently implemented and adhered to across operations.
- All staff are encouraged to pursue Value for Money across all functions and to proactively report opportunities for increased efficiency and effectiveness to the management team.
Fees and Funding
The School aims to publish audited financial statements on its website within two weeks of Board Chair approval, and no later than five months following the close of the financial year.
Higher education institutions are subject to regulation to ensure ethical conduct and the fulfilment of student obligations, as required by the Office for Students and financial statement disclosure requirements.