MPs warn 24 universities at risk of insolvency within 12 months

On May 12, 2026, the Education Select Committee published a report stating that 24 higher education providers in England are at risk of insolvency within the next 12 months, with many already cutting jobs, closing courses or selling buildings or land. The committee, chaired by Helen Hayes MP, said protecting students who have invested in their studies should be a priority and called for an early warning system with the government and the Office for Students ready to intervene before problems reach a crisis. The report notes that seven of these 24 providers have more than 3,000 students, and a further 26 institutions face risk of exit within the next two to three years, though many are smaller. It recommends developing a costed protocol for protecting students and staff, including options such as merging with another institution, restructuring, or an orderly exit with arrangements for students, staff and courses. The Department for Education said it has taken action to secure the sector's finances by raising the maximum tuition fee cap and refocusing the Office for Students to support financial stability; it cites reforms outlined in the post-16 education and skills white paper as a way to restore universities as engines of growth. The report also notes that a tuition fee freeze for undergraduates has pressured finances, leading universities to increase income from postgraduate and international students; international students make up about a quarter of the student body but pay over 45% of fee income, a surplus used to cross-subsidise research and domestic teaching. Hayes added that if the government wants to reduce international students, it must set out how it will stabilise university finances. The Universities and Colleges Union responded that the government is asleep at the wheel and urged an emergency higher education taskforce to oversee the report’s recommendations. Universities UK welcomed the fee increase but pointed to visa changes reducing international enrolments and ongoing costs of research grants; the National Union of Students described the report as scary and said students should not bear the costs of underinvestment.