Families may 'move from England to avoid tuition fee hike'

Families may attempt to move to Scotland or Wales to avoid fee rises in England, said HEFCE.?Photo: ALAMY

An analysis by the Government’s Higher Education Funding Council for England said families may flee over the border to avoid fees of up to ￡9,000 in 2012.

Parents living “close to the borders” are among those most likely to relocate to another country, it was claimed, potentially creating “distortive effects on local economies and housing markets”.

A move from England to Scotland could save students as much as ￡36,000 for a four year degree because of sharp differences in fees policies operated by devolved governments across the UK.

The comments came as it emerged that the Scottish Executive could carry out checks on applicants to ensure they are legitimate residents and not attempting to exploit the generous funding system north of the border.

From next year, English students will be forced to pay up to ￡9,000 wherever they study but Scottish undergraduates will be given free tuition.

Fees for Welsh students will be fixed at ￡3,465 and those in Northern Ireland will pay a similar amount, but only if they stay in their own region.

The system has already caused outrage in England, with several students pursuing legal action against the Scottish government amid claims that the fee rises will breach their human rights.

The Scottish Conservatives have branded the plans “vindictive” and warned that it would “stir up resentment in the rest of the UK against Scotland”.

A paper presented to a HEFCE board meeting warns that there “may be issues with families, particularly those close to the borders, seeking to domicile themselves in Wales or Scotland in order to benefit from favourable fee arrangements”.

The report adds: “This could have distortive effects on local economies and housing markets if it occurred with significant numbers.”

Bob Osborne, emeritus professor of public policy at Ulster University, told Times Higher Education magazine that if a family “was living 15 miles from the Scottish border then you can see how they might try to wangle it”.

But he doubted there was going to be a “mass exodus of people from Surrey to Glasgow”.

The Scottish Executive has already said children whose parents move to Scotland for their careers will be eligible for a free university education.

But families who seek to exploit the system by buying a home north of the Border will not. A spokesman said the Student Awards Agency for Scotland will decide on a case-by-case basis, with people not living north of the border for long likely to be scrutinised.

The HEFCE paper also warned that there is a “question of affordability” attached to the reforms for devolved administrations. Most countries are committed to subsidising students’ tuition even if they study outside their home country and budgets may stretched if universities in England put up their tuition fees, it was claimed.