Higher Education Legislation & Codes

The governance of universities in Ireland is underpinned by specific national legislation, in addition to a code of governance. The two key pieces of national legislation are the Universities Act, 1997 (the 1997 Act), and the Higher Education Authority Act 2022 (the HEA Act 2022) which amends the 1997 Act. We are legally obliged to comply with the provisions of these Acts.

Following the enactment of the HEA Act 2022, it was decided by the Board of the HEA in April 2023 that the HEA Governance Oversight Framework would from now on be underpinned by the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies (the State Code). The State Code provides a common framework for the application of best practice in corporate governance.

Along with all the other Irish universities, we are required to report every year to the Higher Education Authority (HEA), the regulatory authority which oversees the governance and funding of the higher education sector, on our compliance with key aspects of the legislation and the Code.

The HEA Governance Oversight Framework sets out the mechanisms in place for the HEA to exercise oversight of higher education institutions.

We confirm compliance with the Governance Oversight Framework through our annual Oversight Agreement with the HEA and through the Annual Governance Statement