The statistics, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), show that the proportion of UK university students from lower socio-economic backgrounds fell from 29.8 per cent in 2006/7 to 29.4 per cent in 2007/8, and that the proportion of poorer students at Russell Group universities fell from 18.88 per cent to 18.51 per cent.
Getting worse
“These figures show that universities are getting even worse at widening participation from students from poorer backgrounds, despite promising to work harder in this area in return for the ability to charge top-up fees," said NUS President Wes Streeting.
"The idea that fees could be raised to £5,000 a year without any impact on those from lower socio-economic backgrounds is laughable, particularly given the current harsh economic climate.
Rethink
The way we fund universities in England needed a rehtink, added Wes.
“Top-up fees are leaving a generation of students in unprecedented levels of debt, and if the cap were to be raised, many more people from poorer backgrounds would be forced to conclude that they simply cannot afford to go to university at all.
“That is why NUS is launching a radical alternative Blueprint for funding our universities next week. We are challenging politicians to join us in debating this issue, rather than simply kicking it into the long grass and hoping that it will go away.”
Commenting on the fact that that the percentage of young full-time first degree entrants who are dropping out during their first year rose from 7.1 per cent in 2005/6 to 7.4 per cent in 2006/7, Wes said:
“Universities are not working hard enough to help those who are struggling to cope with the costs and demands of higher education. The current system of financial support, which leaves the administration of bursaries in the hands of individual institutions, is not working. We need a national scheme, so that financial support is based on how much a student needs it, not where they happen to be studying.”
In March, a BBC survey found that more than half of university vice chancellors want students to pay even higher tuition fees, calling for charges of at least £5,000 per year, or for there to be no upper limit.