The ‘Beijing Statement’, announced at the end of the first ever UK-China Education Policy Week in Beijing last week, places the primary responsibility for safeguarding standards with individual institutions, but lays the groundwork for broader collaboration at a national and international level to support collaboration and quality assurance in TNE.

“Sharing best practice and experience on quality assurance delivers a valuable contribution to a strong higher education relationship”

“Sharing best practice and experience on quality assurance between the UK and China delivers a valuable contribution to a strong higher education relationship,” the document states.

It also agrees that data sharing and national and international policy dialogues should be encouraged, and that quality assurance agencies “should further develop regular UK-China channels of communication, facilitating future co-operation”.

The statement was jointly developed by the British Council, the China Education International Exchange Association, the China Academic Degrees and Graduate Education Development Centre, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, and the UK Higher Education International Unit, in consultation with the sector.

The announcement followed discussions between more than 100 education experts during the Education Policy Week, organised by the British Council.

The event aimed to build on progress made at the UK-China Education Summit in 2015, including the signing of 23 education agreements that signalled what UK Minister for Universities and Science Jo Johnson called a “new phase of scientific and educational collaboration on an unprecedented scale”, and to inform the joint agenda for 2016 and beyond.

“The commitment to follow these agreed principles paves the way for more high-quality partnerships, benefitting students and institutions alike”

The agreement marks the next phase of collaboration between China and the UK and highlights the “growing scope, depth and strength of the bilateral education partnership”, the British Council said in a statement.

While the document is not legally binding, it “does mark a commitment to cooperation and collaboration on both sides, and to deepen and strengthen partnership in quality assurance of transnational education”, it states.

“[The] announcement demonstrates both countries’ commitment to transnational education, an area in which the UK and China are already world-leading partners,” commented Jim Addison, counselor (education) at the British Embassy in Beijing and director education at the British Council in China.

“The commitment to follow these agreed principles paves the way for more high-quality partnerships between the UK and China, benefitting students and institutions alike,” he added. “In doing so, the Beijing Statement is another milestone in our two countries’ ever-growing relationship in higher education.”