Students Pay a Premium Price — They Deserve Premium Support
At £9,250 per year, UK students at Portsmouth are paying the maximum tuition fee allowed by law. Removing support services is a direct reduction in value for money.
The Real Cost of a Degree
Students in England pay up to £9,250 per year in tuition fees[1] — the maximum permitted by law since 2017. Over a standard three-year degree, that totals £27,750 in fees alone. When living costs, accommodation, and materials are factored in, the average student graduates with over £45,600 of debt.[3]
"Students are consumers of higher education. When fees go up and services go down, that is a breach of the implicit contract between a university and its students." — Consumer Rights Act 2015 principle; see also CMA Higher Education guidance[4]
Academic Support Tutors represent one of the most direct, personal forms of educational support a student can access. They bridge the gap between lectures and independent study, supporting students who are struggling to keep up, those with learning differences, those from non-traditional backgrounds, and international students adapting to a new academic environment.[5]
What £9,250/year should buy you
- Access to qualified academic tutors across all faculties
- One-to-one and small group study support
- Academic writing and skills development
- Support for students with disabilities and learning differences
- Transition support for year-one students
Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) Warning
The CMA has stated that universities must not make "significant changes to courses or services" without clear communication to students. Removing an entire category of support staff almost certainly falls within this guidance.[4]
Indicative breakdown based on HESA sector data.[6]
Student Debt is At a Record High
Average student loan debt at graduation (England).[3]
Students Were Not Consulted — Not Once
A decision affecting thousands of students was made without any formal consultation with the people it affects most. This is not just poor practice — it may be unlawful.
The Right to Be Heard
University students are not passive recipients of education — they are consumers protected by statute and by the higher education regulatory framework. The Higher Education and Research Act 2017 requires universities registered with the Office for Students (OfS) to publish and adhere to access and participation plans, including how they support students.[7]
The Office for Students (OfS) expects that registered providers act in students' interests and that "the student interest is protected." Significant changes to the student experience — including removing support services — should not be made without engaging with students.[8]
"Universities must give students the information they need to make informed choices and must not make significant changes to courses or services they have already signed up for." — Competition and Markets Authority, Higher Education Consumer Law Guidance, 2015 (updated 2023)[4]
What consultation should have looked like:
- Student Union formally notified and engaged
- Student surveys on impact of support removal
- Open forum or town hall for affected students
- Impact assessment published and shared
- Transition plan for students currently receiving support
- Equality Impact Assessment under the Equality Act 2010[9]
Equality Act 2010 — Public Sector Duty
As a public body, the University of Portsmouth must have "due regard" to the need to advance equality of opportunity. Academic support disproportionately benefits students with disabilities, students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and international students. Removing it without an Equality Impact Assessment may breach the Public Sector Equality Duty.[9]
Decision initiated internally
Senior management decide to eliminate Academic Support Tutor roles across all faculties. No student-facing communication at this stage.
Student consultation — SKIPPED
No surveys, focus groups, or formal engagement with the student body were conducted.
Equality Impact Assessment — SKIPPED
No published assessment of impact on protected characteristic groups.
Student Union engagement — SKIPPED
The representative body of students was not given a meaningful opportunity to formally respond.
Decision announced / implemented
Students learn that their Academic Support Tutors will no longer be available — after the decision is already made.
National Student Survey Evidence
The National Student Survey (NSS) consistently shows that "learning resources" and "academic support" are among the top drivers of student satisfaction. Universities that score poorly in these categories suffer reputational damage, lower league table rankings, and reduced future intake — costs that dwarf any short-term saving.[10]
The "Saving" is Less Than £200,000 — A Rounding Error
The financial justification for this decision collapses under scrutiny. The projected savings represent a vanishingly small fraction of the University's total income.
The <£200k saving represents approximately 0.06% of total annual income.[2]
The Numbers Don't Justify the Harm
The University of Portsmouth reported total income of approximately £329.6 million in 2022/23, according to HESA financial data.[2] Against this backdrop, saving less than £200,000 per year represents:
"Cutting a fraction of a percent from the budget while advertising a world-class student experience is not fiscal responsibility — it is false economy."
Hidden costs that dwarf the saving:
- Increased student withdrawal and non-completion
- Lower NSS scores → reduced league table rankings → fewer applications
- Reputational damage across social media and student forums
- Potential legal challenges under consumer and equality law
- Increased demand on already stretched Student Services and mental health teams
- OfS regulatory risk if access & participation commitments are not met[8]
Research shows that for every student who withdraws, a university loses on average £28,000–£40,000 in lifetime tuition income. If this decision causes even 5–8 additional withdrawals per year, it wipes out the entire saving.[11]
An Agenda Driven by Management, Not Student Need
There is no published evidence that this restructuring was driven by student feedback, academic research, or sector best practice. It appears to be a top-down managerial decision that serves institutional interests over student welfare.
What Does the Evidence Actually Show?
Good institutional change is evidence-based: it starts with a clear problem, tests solutions, consults stakeholders, measures impact, and publishes findings. This decision appears to have followed none of those steps.
Hallmarks of good institutional decision-making:
| Criterion | Present? |
|---|---|
| Published evidence of student need for change | ✗ No |
| Student consultation before decision | ✗ No |
| Sector research or benchmarking | ✗ Not published |
| Equality impact assessment | ✗ Not published |
| Alternative cost-saving options explored | ✗ Not evidenced |
| Student transition or mitigation plan | ✗ Not published |
"When a restructuring affects students but is driven by no student data, no consultation, and no transparent rationale — it is reasonable to ask: whose interests does this actually serve?"
The Higher Education sector guidance from Universities UK explicitly recommends that institutions engage in meaningful stakeholder consultation before making significant service changes — not as a courtesy, but as a governance requirement.[12]
Questions that deserve answers:
- What evidence of underperformance or redundancy in the support service was found?
- Was an independent review conducted, and will it be published?
- What alternative support model will replace what is being removed?
- How will the University demonstrate it is still meeting its OfS access commitments?
- What is the plan for students currently mid-degree who rely on this support?
No published student impact assessment means students cannot see what — if anything — they gain.
Governance Accountability
University governors have a fiduciary duty to the institution's charitable objects — which include the education and welfare of students. Governors should be asking whether this decision was taken with adequate evidence, proper consultation, and appropriate scrutiny of alternatives. Students have the right to raise concerns directly with the Board of Governors.[13]
OfS Condition of Registration B3
The Office for Students requires that registered providers deliver a "high quality academic experience for all their students." Removing all academic support staff across every faculty, with no replacement model, puts this condition at risk.[8]
The Most Vulnerable Students Will Suffer Most
Academic Support Tutors are not a luxury — they are a lifeline for students with disabilities, students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and those at risk of dropping out entirely.
Who Relies on Academic Support?
Academic Support Tutors provide targeted, personalised assistance to the students who need it most. Research from HESA and UCAS consistently shows that students from the following groups have higher rates of academic difficulty and benefit most from embedded support services:[5],[6]
Dyslexia, ADHD, autism spectrum, and other conditions that require adapted academic support. Removal may constitute a failure of the reasonable adjustments duty under the Equality Act.[9]
Adapting to UK academic culture, English-language academic writing, and new assessment formats — often for the first time.
No family member has attended university. Academic support provides the scaffolding that privileged students often receive informally at home.
Academic pressure is a leading driver of student mental health crises. Support tutors play an early-intervention role that prevents escalation to more intensive (and expensive) mental health services.
Indicative projections based on HESA widening participation data and sector research.[5],[14]
The Mental Health Crisis Context
The 2023 Student Academic Experience Survey (HEPI/Advance HE) found that 57% of students reported their mental health had negatively affected their studies in the past year.[15] Academic Support Tutors sit on the front line of early identification and referral. Removing them does not reduce this demand — it simply means it goes unmet, or arrives at a crisis point.
Access & Participation Plan Risk
The University of Portsmouth has published an Access and Participation Plan with the OfS committing to improving outcomes for underrepresented groups. Removing academic support services directly undermines these legally binding commitments.[8]
This Decision Can Be Reversed.
Students have the right to challenge decisions that reduce the quality of their education, especially when those decisions were made without their input and in possible breach of consumer and equality law.
References & Sources
- UK Government. Tuition fee limits. Department for Education, 2023. Undergraduate tuition fee cap: £9,250/year. gov.uk/student-finance
- Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). Higher Education Provider Data: Finances 2022/23. University of Portsmouth total income. hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/finances
- Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). Student loan repayments and borrowing under the reformed system. IFS, 2023. Average loan debt for 2022/23 entrants: ~£45,600. ifs.org.uk
- Competition & Markets Authority (CMA). Consumer law compliance in higher education. CMA, 2015 (updated 2023). gov.uk/cma-higher-education
- Thomas, L. Building student engagement and belonging in higher education at a time of change. Paul Hamlyn Foundation, 2012. Evidence on academic support and student retention.
- HESA. Higher Education Provider Data: Staff 2022/23. Indicative expenditure breakdowns across the sector. hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/staff
- Higher Education and Research Act 2017. c. 29. UK Parliament. Provisions on student protection, access, and participation plans.
- Office for Students (OfS). Conditions of registration: Quality and standards (Condition B3). OfS, 2023. officeforstudents.org.uk
- Equality Act 2010. c. 15. UK Parliament. Section 149: Public sector equality duty; Schedule 13: Reasonable adjustments for disabled students.
- Advance HE / Office for Students. National Student Survey 2023: Sector-level results. Academic support questions (Q9–Q12) remain among the lowest-scoring domains. officeforstudents.org.uk/nss
- HEFCE / Research by UUK. Non-continuation rates and institutional income loss. Universities UK analysis of withdrawal cost per student (£28,000–£40,000 in lost lifetime tuition). universitiesuk.ac.uk
- Universities UK. Student engagement in governance. UUK, 2022. Guidance on meaningful consultation with students before significant service changes. universitiesuk.ac.uk
- Charity Commission / HEFCE. Governance Code for Higher Education. Committee of University Chairs (CUC), 2020. Governors' duties in respect of student welfare and charitable objects. universitychairs.ac.uk
- HESA. Widening participation: UK performance indicators 2022/23. Completion and attainment data by student background. hesa.ac.uk
- HEPI / Advance HE. Student Academic Experience Survey 2023. 57% of students reported mental health negatively affecting academic performance. hepi.ac.uk