Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Jul 23, 2025

UK: Universities warn of going bust without emergency funds

Universities across the UK are calling for emergency funding of at least £2bn, warning some institutions will go bust without it.

Universities UK says the coronavirus pandemic is threatening to sharply cut overseas student numbers and put universities in financial danger.

They are asking for controls on student numbers in each university, to keep fee income at similar levels to last year.

Universities are promising to honour any offers already made to students.

"Without government support, some universities would face financial failure, others would come close to financial failure and be forced to reduce provision," says a letter from higher education leaders to ministers across the UK.

Alistair Jarvis, chief executive of Universities UK, says the proposals would help universities to "weather the very serious financial challenges posed by Covid-19".

He says academic researchers have made a "huge contribution" to tackling the coronavirus pandemic - and their expertise will be needed in the "recovery of the economy and communities following the crisis".

They are calling for an extra £2bn in research funding and on top of that to provide emergency loans for universities that faced "significant income losses".

"Targeted support" should be available to protect strategically important subjects such as science and medicine, say the industry leaders.


This would be in response to cash pressures from the pandemic:

Universities receive almost £7bn in fees from overseas students - and there are fears that their numbers could be much reduced this autumn
The university sector says it has already lost £790m in cancelled business activities, such as conferences, catering and student accommodation
There is also uncertainty about whether campuses will be able to re-open in the autumn and whether many UK students will defer entry this year
There have been warnings of unprecedented "volatility" in this year's admissions - which, if left unchecked, could see some universities expanding but others left with too few students to be financially viable.

This is a particular risk for universities in England and Wales, which are highly dependent on tuition fee income.

In response, Universities UK is asking for controls on the number of students each university in England and Wales can recruit this year, keeping them to levels expected before the coronavirus outbreak, to stop financially unsustainable swings in numbers.

The scale of concern was suggested in an internal email from a Russell Group university seen by the BBC this week, which warned the university could lose a quarter of its income next year.

The letter from Universities UK to ministers says that to provide "stability" for students currently applying, all offers already made would have to be honoured if students made the required grade.

There is also a call to push back by a year the point at which European Union students are categorised as overseas students, when they will face higher fees and visa restrictions.

Jo Grady of the UCU lecturers' union said the plan was a "piecemeal approach that fails to recognise the size of the problem, or the damage we risk doing to our academic capacity".

Eva Crossan Jory, vice president of the National Union of Students, said any extra funding must support students, "especially considering the mounting discontent that courses are not being delivered as promised and demands for refunds".

She backed calls for the government to "step in" to protect higher education, but said it should include "refunding or all or part of the fees".

"The scale of the financial challenges facing higher education institutions are clearly very serious", said Scotland's Deputy First Minister John Swinney.

He promised to work closely with universities to help them "emerge from this crisis".

A Welsh government spokesman said universities had been "at the forefront of the battle against the coronavirus" and ministers would work to ensure they had the "necessary investment".

In England, a Department for Education spokeswoman said: "The outbreak poses significant challenges to the sector and the government is working closely with universities to understand the financial risks and implications they might face at this uncertain time."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×