Rebuilding Erasmus+ capacity a key challenge for UK Higher Education

Representatives of the United Kingdom higher-education sector have identified the loss of Erasmus+ expertise following the UK's departure from the programme as a major challenge.

During a webinar organised by the British Council on 15/06/2026 on the UK’s return to the Erasmus+ programme, Eduardo Ramos, Head of Higher Education Systems & Internationalisation at the British Council, said: "British universities have enough experience in international mobility, but unfortunately, during the last six years when the UK was outside the Erasmus programme, some new developments have emerged that are unfamiliar to them."

In particular, he mentioned Erasmus Without Paper (EWP), a digital initiative to allow universities and higher education institutions to exchange student mobility data securely and electronically, eliminating traditional paper-based methods, as well as the Blended Intensive Programmes (BIPs), short and flexible Erasmus+ study exchanges that combine virtual learning with physical mobility.

"We are currently in a transition phase, during which it is essential for us to rebuild…