UK households with children born before 2006 being handed free £414

The tuition fee cap could hit £10,680 in 2029, students have been warned - but maintenance loans are also rising. The £285 increase for 2025-26 (3.1%) was calculated using the RPIX measure of inflation but could rise further before the end of the decade, it is claimed.

To help soften the blow, Labour Party government Bridget Phillipson also announced a parallel increase to student maintenance loans, providing up to £414 extra per year to support students at university, who were born before 2006, from the lowest-income families. The Institute for Fiscal Studies says: “If the government continues to increase fees in line with RPIX each year, the tuition fee cap could reach £10,680 in 2029-30 on current forecasts. If the government is planning to continue to raise the fee cap with inflation, it should say so.”

Maintenance loans will also be increasing – by up to £414 a year. Save the Student, a personal finance site, says students still face a shortfall in what they can borrow compared to what it costs to live. It says: “Loans now fall short of living costs by £504 every month – over double the shortfall from just four years ago.”

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Tuition fees in England will rise to £9,535 in the next academic year (2025-26). The maximum universities can charge is currently £9,250 – a cap that has been in place since 2017. The education secretary said: “This government’s mission is to break down barriers to opportunity, which is why we are doing more to support students struggling with the cost of living despite the fiscal challenges our country faces.

“The situation we have inherited means this government must take the tough decisions needed to put universities on a firmer financial footing so they can deliver more opportunity for students and growth for our economy.” Ms Phillipson told MPs: “It is no use keeping tuition fees down for future students if the universities are not there for them to attend, nor if students can’t afford to support themselves while they study.”