Refund tuition fees and rent, students demand

Hundreds of thousands of university students have backed a campaign for the reimbursement of tuition and accommodation fees after the outbreak of coronavirus disrupted teaching and assessments.

A petition calling for refunds has been signed by more than 260,000 students. They say online learning is not worth the £9,250 a year typically paid in tuition fees.

Most universities have either moved lectures online or cancelled them altogether, although several weeks of term remain. Other facilities such as libraries are only accessible online and in many cases grading has been delayed.

Sophie Quinn, the 21-year-old Liverpool University student who started the petition, said the overall quality of education had been poor.

A spokesman for Universities UK said missed teaching time was “unsettling” but current student loans guidance remained in place as most universities had continued to teach via distance learning. All decisions to repay accommodation fees would be made on an individual basis, the spokesman added. Robert Davies, 62, from Scotland, said it was “morally and ethically wrong” for universities to keep taking rent. Mr Davies’s son, who studies at the University of Glasgow, has been charged for his accommodation despite handing in the keys on March 18. The university initially refused to refund the costs but later said it would reimburse students after a 28-day notice period. Several universities have confirmed that they will not charge any future accommodation fees.

260k The number of students who have signed a petition calling for fee refunds