This month some 70 members of our University Business Group gathered for our bi-annual away day. Professor Les Ebdon CBE, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire and Chair of the million+ group, spoke about the opportunities and challenges facing the higher education sector. Mills & Reeve partners also gave an update on our work supporting universities and colleges across the UK, covering our advice on major real estate projects and commercial ventures as well as on the latest student and staff issues. We had a special focus on our experience of supporting our higher education clients internationally through our membership of the State Capital Group. We also discussed the activities that our lawyers have been undertaking in particular jurisdictions over the last year on legal matters and visits to our associated law firms in India, China, Malaysia, the Middle East and the US. Our managing partner addressed the key theme of how we can help our clients in these more stretching times by delivering outstanding client service and providing transparency and certainty of costs.