Undergraduate tuition fees in England will begin rising in line with inflation from next year, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has confirmed.
The move marks the end of a long-running fee freeze and comes amid mounting financial pressures across the university sector.
Phillipson told MPs that maintenance loans would also be uprated annually with inflation, and that universities would eventually only be permitted to charge full fees if they demonstrate high-quality teaching.
The reforms apply only to England, as higher education policy is devolved; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will continue to set their own rules.
Universities have warned for years that frozen fees and rising costs have pushed the sector into crisis. More than 40% of English universities are now believed to be running a deficit, while a recent fall in international student numbers has deepened financial strain.
Overseas students typically pay much higher fees and have helped to subsidise domestic places.
The planned inflation-link means tuition costs are expected to climb beyond £10,000 a year during this parliament.
While demand from 18-year-olds remains strong, the sector is seeing a rise in commuter students who live at home to avoid soaring living costs.
Even with uprated support, maintenance loans still lag behind real expenses, with rent in many cities swallowing most of the maximum £12,000 loan.
Phillipson’s announcement formed part of a post-16 education White Paper.
Tuition fee caps rising with inflation from 2026, Maintenance loans rising annually with forecast inflation, A new mechanism to link maximum fees to teaching quality, New targeted support for the most disadvantaged students, funded by a levy on international student fees and the introduction of a new V-level to replace BTECs and other Level 3 vocational courses.
