Students starting university in England and Wales in 2027 will be the first to pay more than £10,000 a year in tuition fees, intensifying scrutiny of whether higher education offers good value for money. The rise comes even as England's student loan book hit a record £295bn in the year to March 2026, though the average debt held by this year's graduating cohort actually fell by 9.9% to £47,730, largely because the first students on the more favourable Plan 5 loan terms have now left university.

Tuition fees will rise to £10,050 a year in 2027-28, up from £9,790 in 2026, meaning a typical three-year course will cost at least £30,150 and a four-year course £40,200; further inflation-linked rises are expected. Plan 5 loans extend repayment terms from 30 to 40 years, lower the earnings threshold for repayment to £25,000, and charge interest at the RPI rate rather than the higher RPI+3% under Plan 2 — changes the Student Loans Company says mean 55% of the 2025-26 intake are expected to repay in full, roughly double the proportion for 2022-23 entrants. Arrangements vary across the UK, with Scottish students studying in Scotland generally paying no fees, and separate maintenance loans, paid termly by the SLC, available to help cover living costs.