Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Department for EducationLatest NewsEconomics, government & businessEducation - further and higherRecruitment & retention

University funding cuts could cost 300,000 student places

by Kat Baker 2 Feb 2010
by Kat Baker 2 Feb 2010


Up to 300,000 students could miss out on university places and the quality of teaching could decline after more than £449m was shaved off England’s higher education budgets yesterday.

Teaching budgets will be reduced by £215m – a cut in real terms of 1.6% on 2009-10 levels, said the Higher Education Funding Council for England.

Research funding has been frozen, while the buildings budget was cut by 15%.

The amount universities receive for encouraging those from the poorest backgrounds to apply has also gone down by 0.75% to £144m.

Over the next three years, total cuts will amount to £950m.

But an extra £10m will go into the teaching of science, technology, engineering and maths, which the government is keen to promote.

The cuts come as universities face unprecedented demand for places – with some institutions reporting increases in applications of more than 20%.

Steve Smith, president of vice-chancellors’ group Universities UK, warned more than 200,000 applicants could be left without a place this year.

But David Green, vice-chancellor of the University of Worcester, told the Guardian that up to 300,000 students could be rejected.

National Union of Students leader, Wes Streeting, said the cuts threatened “irreversible damage” to higher education.

He said: “In spite of protestations to the contrary, the cuts being imposed by the government are going to hit teaching, research and the number of places available at a time of record demand.

“Singling out universities for cuts of this kind seems to me to be an extraordinary act of self harm by the government.”

Universities are expected to receive their individual budgets next month.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

But the higher education minister David Lammy told the BBC “there will be a minimal impact on teaching and students. No further savings were announced and the bulk of the savings will come from a reduction in capital spend”.


“These savings come against a background of record government investment in higher education, around 25% more than 1997.”

Kat Baker

previous post
Cadbury workers lobby government for job security pledges under Kraft
next post
Pension shortfall may cause Readers Digest UK collapse

You may also like

Man who juggled four council jobs guilty of...

18 Jul 2025

House of Lords votes against day-one dismissal rights

18 Jul 2025

Government launches call for evidence on unpaid internships

18 Jul 2025

Hospitality made up 45% of latest job losses

18 Jul 2025

‘Window of opportunity’ to avert resident doctor strikes

18 Jul 2025

Jaguar Land Rover to lose 500 management roles

18 Jul 2025

Gender pay gaps narrow in 2024-25

17 Jul 2025

UK job vacancies fall to a 10-year low

17 Jul 2025

Zero-hours employees may have to request guaranteed hours

17 Jul 2025

How to avoid the ‘Netflix effect’ in learning...

17 Jul 2025

  • Empower and engage for the future: A revolution in talent development (webinar) WEBINAR | As organisations strive...Read more
  • Empowering working parents and productivity during the summer holidays SPONSORED | Businesses play a...Read more
  • AI is here. Your workforce should be ready. SPONSORED | From content creation...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+