In England, an increase in university tuition fees is anticipated to be announced soon. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will present these changes in a statement to Members of Parliament on Monday afternoon.
The maximum tuition fees in England surged to £9,000 in 2012, only increasing once since then, reaching £9,250 in 2017. This change comes as universities seek government assistance to manage their finances. The Office for Students, the regulatory body in England, has indicated that 40% of universities foresee a deficit for the current academic year.
In a statement made in July, Phillipson urged universities to “manage their budgets” while addressing the growing calls for government intervention to support struggling institutions.
Universities UK, which represents 141 universities, has proposed that tuition fees should rise to £12,500 per year to adequately cover teaching costs. However, they admit that such a request might appear “clueless” and “out of touch” with reality.
The previous tripling of fees in 2012 sparked significant protests. Since then, the only increase occurred in October 2017, when then-Prime Minister Theresa May announced a modest rise of £250. A freeze on fees is set to expire in 2025, at which point they are expected to increase according to the RPIX inflation measure—this metric excludes mortgage interest costs.
Rising tuition fees will likely compel students to borrow more money for their education, resulting in increased debt upon graduation. Most students finance their education through student loans administered by Student Finance England, which sends funds directly to universities without students ever seeing the money.
In addition to tuition loans, students are eligible for maintenance loans to help cover living expenses. Although these loans have increased nominally over recent years, their real value has not kept pace with the rising cost of living.
Both tuition fee and maintenance loans require repayment. Notably, maintenance grants—previously non-repayable assistance—were eliminated in 2016.
Furthermore, the Government of Jersey aims to enhance student wellbeing through new schemes designed to allow students to “explore alternative options” if parts of their courses are cut. Interestingly, the number of teenage students receiving the £40-a-week assistance for living costs has halved since 2010.
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