Leeds Met seeks huge increase in student fee to £8,500

The former polytechnic has become the first of a group of newer universities to announce the amount it aims to charge students when a new system comes into effect.

If approved by the Government it will mean the institution’s fees will have more than quadrupled in the space of just four years. Under its former vice chancellor, Simon Lee, the university had been the lowest-charging in England with fees of £2,000 a year.

Its fees were brought in line with the rest of the sector last year and are now set to rise to £8,500 when universities put up their charges to cope with a massive cut in teaching funding. From 2012, universities will be expected to charge between £6,000 and £9,000 a year.

Leeds Met’s chairman of governors, Lord Woolmer, said: “In the face of huge cuts in Government funding, we face difficult and tough choices.

“We shall continue to secure cost savings but it is essential that we remain able to invest in high- quality university education and facilities for our students.

“We have a proud history of widening participating and will continue to support access into higher education and ensure that our students are successful at university and after they graduate.”

Leeds Met is the first member of the Million+ group of newer universities to announce the amount it intends to charge. It is also the first in Yorkshire to set a figure below the maximum. Leeds plans to charge £9,000 a year and while Huddersfield has ruled this out, it has yet to say what its fees will be. Elsewhere 13 universities have announced planned annual tuition fees of £9,000.