Earlier this year the government proposed new plans to increase the price of tuition fees for students attending university to £9,250 per year of study. This is a £250 rise from the current £9,000 fee and will take effect from 2017.

The government claim that increasing fees will provide vital additional resources to universities, giving them the financial capacity to improve the quality of teaching available to their students. Tuition fees last rose in 2012, from £3,375 to £9,000.

Since the previous rise in 2012, many universities have been spending vast sums of money to improve their facilities, such as building new libraries, sport centres and art studios. These developments are helping universities to offer a high standard of education to their students, not solely via their courses but also through funding a wide array of social activities and further learning opportunities.  

The initial increase in 2012 received a huge backlash from students and the public alike. Many protested through the streets of London, claiming ‘broken promises’ from the government. Many felt that Nick Clegg’s broken promise on university tuition “massively undermined” the trust of their vote. This further increase has left current and prospective students disheartened and bewildered.

The Office for Fair Access (OFFA) have stated that universities will only be able to increase their fees if they spend more money trying to recruit students from underprivileged backgrounds. Despite this being no consolation to students already attending university, who will also be affected by the tuition fee rise, the new recruitment specification and budget will help to diversify university attendees and provide more opportunities for individuals from deprived backgrounds to continue in further education.

University applications dropped 8.7% after the initial rise of tuition fees in 2012. However, a record number of applicants was reported in the year 2015, 100,000 more than the previous record held in 2011.