The review suggested several major reforms in response to growing criticism of the level of university tuition fees. While these reforms focused on the system in England, the could prompt a response from other parts of the UK as well. The main proposals were:

• The cap on university tuition fees should be reduced from £9,250 to £7,500 a year by 2021/22, frozen for 2022/23 and inflation-linked from 2023/24.
• For new students from 2021/22, the annual income threshold at which loans start to be repaid should be cut from £25,000 to £23,000 (in 2018/19 values). The loan repayment rate should remain at 9% of income above the threshold.
• The maximum repayment term for these new students would be extended from the current 30 years to 40 years.
• Means-tested maintenance grants should be reintroduced and the eligibility thresholds revalued in line with inflation.

A surprising consequence of the proposals would be that the total repaid by the highest-earning graduates would be less than under the current rules. But those on ‘middle of the range’ graduate earnings could end up paying a lot more as a result of the ten-year extension of the repayment term.

These proposals would change important aspects of student financing, but most graduates would still start their working lives with a substantial amount of inflation-linked debt. Some will end their working lives 40 years’ later in a similar situation.

If you have children or grandchildren heading for university in the coming years, you should factor their education costs into your planning.