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ARTICLE · 22 JUNE 2026

When Regulators Overstep: Lessons From Sussex v OfS

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP
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Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP

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In R (University of Sussex) v Office for Students [2026] EWHC 984 (Admin), the High Court quashed the decision of the Office for Students (the OfS) to find the University of Sussex (the UoS)...

United KingdomLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Nusrat Zar
Nusrat Zar
James Wood
James Wood
Andrew Lidbetter
Andrew Lidbetter
Jasveer Randhawa
Jasveer Randhawa
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In R (University of Sussex) v Office for Students [2026] EWHC 984 (Admin), the High Court quashed the decision of the Office for Students (the OfS) to find the University of Sussex (the UoS) in breach of two conditions of registration and to impose a £585,000 fine.

The OfS had concluded that the UoS had breached certain conditions of registration set out in its regulatory framework, including that the UoS’s Trans and Non-Binary Equality Policy Statement (the TNBEPS) breached condition E1 (relating to freedom of speech and academic freedom). The fine was imposed regarding the TNBEPS, using the OfS’s powers under the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 (HERA).

Key points

  • Regulators must approach their functions with an open mind. Evidence that a regulator was keen to find a breach to send a signal to the rest of the industry such that it closed its mind to considerations pointing against a finding of breach will leave it open to allegations of predetermination. 

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