Higher Education Today – Autumn 2026: Special Edition

Welcome to the autumn edition of Higher Education Today.

In each edition we feature content from key members of our Higher Education team.

In this edition, Rupert Lugg, partner in our Energy Team focuses on the findings from our research into decarbonisation in the higher education sector. You can find out more about this research here.

Our disputes team have also published the results from their ‘Disputes Pulse Survey 2026: Prevention is Better Than Cure’, which highlights contractual disputes as a primary concern. Read more below.

We are also delighted to launch our autumn higher education webinar series which includes:

• Higher Education and Decarbonisation: Research Insights and Practical Solutions

• Regulation of Heat Networks – What does this mean for the Higher Education sector?

• Managing Estate Safety: Practical Considerations for the Higher Education sector

If you would like further information about the wider Higher Education team please see our Higher Education brochure.

We hope you find the newsletter interesting and helpful.

Ashley Norman

Head of Higher Education

Capital, Capacity and Carbon: Delivering Decarbonisation Across Higher Education

The higher education sector has never been more ambitious when it comes to sustainability. Universities across the UK have declared climate emergencies, adopted net zero targets and developed detailed carbon reduction plans. Yet our latest research reveals that the biggest challenge facing the sector is no longer identifying what needs to be done. It is delivering it.

Our new report, Capital, Capacity and Carbon: Higher Education and the Delivery of Decarbonisation, draws on interviews with sustainability and estates leaders from across the sector to explore the realities of implementing decarbonisation programmes in an increasingly complex financial and operational environment.

The findings paint a picture of a sector that understands the route to net zero, but is increasingly grappling with the practical challenges of turning ambition into delivered infrastructure.

The Four Challenges Shaping University Decarbonisation

Our research identified four interconnected challenges that are influencing decarbonisation programmes across the higher education sector:

Infrastructure Constraints

The technologies required to decarbonise university estates are largely understood. Heat pumps, solar generation, energy management systems and building fabric improvements are no longer novel concepts. However, many institutions are discovering that electrical capacity is becoming a critical constraint. As universities move away from gas heating and continue to expand research facilities, accommodation and digital infrastructure, competition for grid capacity is intensifying.

Increasingly, universities are being forced to treat electrical capacity as a strategic asset and factor energy infrastructure planning into long-term estate strategies.

The Financial Challenge

The business case for decarbonisation is becoming more complex. Historically, energy projects often offered a clear financial return through reduced energy consumption. Today, many of the measures that deliver the greatest carbon reductions can increase operational costs. The shift from gas heating to electric heat pumps is a prime example.

At the same time, the closure of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme has created uncertainty around future funding opportunities, leaving institutions increasingly reliant on internal capital allocations and alternative delivery models. Universities are therefore placing greater emphasis on strategic value, considering the wider benefits of projects beyond traditional financial payback calculations.

Compounding the challenge is an increasingly difficult financial environment. The Office for Students reports that more than a third of institutions recorded a deficit in 2024-25, with that figure forecast to reach 42.7% in 2025-26.

Delivery Capability

One of the strongest themes emerging from the research was the challenge of delivery capacity. Estates teams are being asked to deliver transformational infrastructure programmes while continuing to manage day-to-day operational responsibilities across increasingly complex estates.

Many institutions have identified viable projects and funding routes. What often stands between ambition and delivery is access to the people, skills and capability needed to bring those projects forward successfully. Early legal, commercial and technical input is becoming increasingly important in overcoming these barriers and reducing project risk.

Governance and Organisational Alignment

Perhaps the most surprising finding was that some of the biggest barriers to decarbonisation are organisational rather than technical. Successful programmes require collaboration across sustainability teams, estates functions, finance departments, academics, researchers and senior leadership teams.

Institutions making the greatest progress typically share several characteristics: strong executive sponsorship, clear governance structures, effective stakeholder engagement and a culture that enables transparency around progress and challenges.

Success Means More Than Carbon Reduction

The most successful universities are increasingly viewing decarbonisation as a strategic investment rather than simply an environmental programme. Our research found that projects are often being designed to support wider institutional objectives, including research and innovation, student recruitment, external partnerships and reputation.

In a highly competitive higher education market, sustainability credentials are becoming an increasingly important differentiator. Universities are looking beyond carbon savings alone and considering how decarbonisation investments can create broader institutional value.

Explore the Research

The report concludes that higher education does not have an ambition problem. It has a delivery challenge. The institutions that succeed over the next decade will be those that combine clear governance, delivery capability, strategic investment and long-term planning to turn net zero ambitions into delivered projects.

Read the full report

Visit our Decarbonisation & Net Zero Delivery Hub to download ‘Higher Education and the delivery of decarbonisation - Capital, Capacity and Carbon’ and explore our wider research into decarbonisation across housing, higher education, local government and health.

Rupert Lugg, Tim Kittow

BACK TO QUICK LINKS

Prevention is better than cure

Whether it is a major estates project, research collaboration, technology procurement or the introduction of AI tools, universities are managing increasingly complex relationships and risks. Our Disputes Pulse Survey 2026: Prevention is Better Than Cure highlights contractual disputes as a primary concern, alongside regulatory pressures, limited internal capacity and uncertainty around AI. For higher education institutions, these issues can quickly become costly, disruptive and reputationally damaging, diverting already stretched resources away from teaching, research and the student experience.

AI adds another dimension to the challenge and opportunity. Research from Jisc shows that students are already using AI tools daily, while calling for clearer guidance, fairer access and greater involvement in how AI is introduced. Robust governance can help universities benefit from AI while managing risks relating to data, intellectual property, procurement, academic integrity and accountability.

The survey’s findings provide a timely reminder that clear contracts, defined responsibilities and early intervention can prevent disagreements from becoming lengthy disputes, protecting institutional resources and supporting universities’ wider strategic objectives.

Learn more about these challenges in our full report.

Virginia Cooper, Emily Heard

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Join Our Autumn Higher Education Webinar

Delivering Decarbonisation Projects Across the Higher Education Sector

Delivering decarbonisation projects across university estates can be challenging in the face of financial pressures, competing priorities and complex estate requirements.

Join our higher education and energy specialists as we discuss the findings from our research report, including:

• The common barriers to delivering decarbonisation programmes

• Electrical capacity and infrastructure challenges

• Funding, procurement and delivery models

• Property, governance and legal considerations

• Practical strategies for accelerating delivery across university estates

The webinar forms part of our Higher Education Webinar Series and will provide practical insights for estates directors, sustainability leads, finance professionals and senior decision-makers involved in delivering net zero programmes.

Learn more and register here.

If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in our research, please get in touch with a member of our Higher Education, Energy and Resource Management team.

Rupert Lugg, Mark Paget Skelin, Tim Kittow

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Say hello to us

Our Higher Education team is attending and speaking at a number of in-person and online events over the next few months, please follow the links for details. If you are also at these events, please come and say hello to us.

• Our higher education webinar series

  • Higher Education and Decarbonisation: Research Insights and Practical Solutions

  • Regulation of Heat Networks – What does this mean for the Higher Education sector?

  • Managing Estate Safety: Practical Considerations for the Higher Education sector

• Universities Safety and Health Association (USHA) – 7-9 October 2026 (Aston University)

• UHR Wise Wednesday – Preventing Sexual Harassment – what does the ERA 2025 have in store? – 21 October 2026 (online)

• Independent Higher Education Annual Conference – 18 November 2026 (London)

Stay in the know — follow our LinkedIn page for legal insights that matter, or sign up for our Higher Education quarterly newsletter and bi-annual webinar series.