Tag Archives: independent commission on fees

Why Lib Dems shouldn’t keep schtum about tuition fees

tuition fees vote“University tuition fee rise has not deterred poorer students from applying”. That was the headline in The Guardian this week reporting new analysis by the Independent Commission on Fees chaired by Will Hutton:

The raising of tuition fees to £9,000 has not put off students from disadvantaged backgrounds from applying to university – although the gap in applications between those from wealthy and poor backgrounds remains wide, according to new analysis. …

The commission found that university application rates for 18-year-olds in England have continued to recover from their post-rise lows, with application rates for 2014 entry – including students who will receive their A-level results on Thursday – almost two percentage points higher than in 2010.

While students who are not eligible for free school meals – available for pupils from households earning less than £16,000 – remain more than twice as likely to go to university, the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students has narrowed from 30.5% in 2010 to 29.8% in 2013.

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  • Michael BG
    Peter Msrtin, I am glad we agree that guaranteed jobs should be voluntary. I am not convinced that those of a particular age should be a priority, I would...
  • Roland
    @Michael BG “ Unemployed people need some time to look for work. Job Centres used to say that looking for a job is a full-time job.” From my experience, ...
  • Simon R
    @Michael; You seem to be making a lot of assumptions about how a guaranteed job scheme would work, which don't match anything either I or Peter have claimed. T...
  • David Sheppard
    Well said Manuela so pleased to have helped you during the election. Wonderful to have a Liberal MP in Stratford !...
  • Peter Msrtin
    @ Michael I agree guaranteed jobs should be voluntary and they should be properly paid. So these wouldn't be workfare. The emphasis would be on the young ...