The government has announced that university tuition fees in England will increase annually in line with inflation, starting in 2026.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has confirmed the increases for the next two years and pledged legislation to automate the process each year thereafter.
Maintenance loans will also see yearly increases in accordance with inflation.
Speaking before Parliament, Phillipson stated that “charging full fees will be conditional on high quality teaching,” specifying that only universities demonstrating strong student outcomes will be permitted to charge the maximum fees.
Universities that do not meet the quality threshold set by the Office for Students, the regulatory body in England, will be barred from charging the new maximum and may face enrollment caps.
Tuition fees in England for the current academic year stand at £9,535, following a rise last year, the first in over a decade.
The Retail Price Index minus mortgage payments (RPIx) is expected to be the inflation measure used for future increases.
Given the likely fluctuations in that inflation rate before next year’s increase, the exact fees for students starting university in 2026 remain unclear. If calculated at the current rate, fees would increase by approximately £400 annually, exceeding £9,900.
Universities UK, representing 141 universities, described the plans as offering “a much-needed reset for our university system.”
Chief Executive Vivienne Stern stated, “It makes clear that universities are a huge national asset, rightly admired around the world. We need them to be in great shape if we want national renewal.”
She added that raising fees in line with inflation will “help to halt the long-term erosion of universities’ financial sustainability, following a decade of fee freezes.”
However, University and College Union General Secretary Jo Grady stated that the government has “doubled down on the disastrous tuition-fees funding model, which created the crisis the sector is currently facing.”
The union recently published an analysis suggesting that universities had collectively announced over 12,000 job cuts in the past year.
Prof Ian Dunn, Provost at Coventry University, described the proposed increases as a “good thing” for universities but cautioned that they “under no circumstances will this solve the problem.”
“From a university perspective, it adds a little income and will alleviate a little of the pressure,” he stated.
“But it will not in itself solve the financial situation universities are in right now.”
Coventry student Katie, who aspires to be a teacher, finds her student loan daunting and believes it will “always follow” her.
“I don’t even think I’ll be able to pay it off ever,” she said.
“It’s not going to happen, I know it’s not.”
Overall, there is no limit on the number of university places in England, except for a limited number of regulated courses like medicine.
To charge maximum fees, universities will be assessed on the added value they provide to a student’s academic journey, although details on how this will be measured are currently lacking, considering the majority of students now graduate with either a first-class degree or a 2:1.
These standards are under consultation, and it remains unclear when they will be implemented to replace the existing teaching and excellence framework.
A similar performance measurement approach is already in place for schools, based on Year 6 Key Stage 2 tests (Sats) and GCSE results, though its ease of understanding and use by parents is questionable.
Details of the proposed maintenance grants for some students on selected courses by the end of this parliament are expected to be revealed during the autumn Budget on November 26.
The government’s post-16 skills and higher education white paper also indicates that, from autumn 2026, a new Lifelong Learning Entitlement will provide tuition fee loans to individuals studying courses at a level equivalent to the first and second year of university.
The government anticipates that universities will collaborate with further education colleges to facilitate easier transitions for students moving between institutions to continue their studies.
The changes announced on Monday apply exclusively to England, as education is devolved across the rest of the UK. Tuition fees in Wales were increased last year to £9,535, matching the level in England, shortly after the English announcement.
Tuition fees in Northern Ireland were £4,750 in 2024-25, with the economy minister there ruling out any increases above the price of inflation in May.
Scottish students are exempt from tuition fees at Scottish universities.
Additional reporting by Hope Rhodes and Hayley Clarke.
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